Howard "Butch" Kerzner, CEO of Kerzner International Holdings which includes the Atlantis resort, Paradise Island, Bahamas, was killed along with three others in a helicopter crash in the Dominican Republic on Oct. 11.

Kerzner, 42 years old and the son of Sol Kerzner, chairman and founder of the company, was in the Dominican Republic to survey potential development sites.

The crash occurred near the tourist resort area of Sosua on the island's north coast. He was on board with one additional passenger and two pilots. There were no survivors.

Prior to his appointment as CEO in January 2004, Kerzner served as the company's president for eight years. He joined Kerzner International (then called Sun International) in 1992 as director of international corporate development.

Paul O'Neil, former CEO of the company's Paradise Island operation and a current member of the company's Board of Directors, has been appointed acting CEO, effective immediately.

Kerzner, who had homes in New York and the Bahamas, is survived by his wife and two children.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

To contact reporter Gay Nagle Myers, send e-mail to [email protected].

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