A second Indian student has died here, days after she was rescued along with a compatriot from a swollen lake in the US state of Texas where Hurricane Harvey wreaked havoc.
Shalini Singh, 25, who was pursuing master’s degree in public health from the Texas A&M University, was rescued from the Lake Bryan, where she along with another Indian student Nikhil Bhatia, had gone swimming last Saturday.
While Bhatia died in hospital on August 30, Singh, who continued to be in a critical condition, was declared dead late Sunday night by doctors.
Her younger brother and maternal uncle, who flew in from New Delhi on August 30, were with her at the time of death.
"She wanted to do research on diseases. She aimed to serve the humanity. That was her motto and it remained so, until I last saw her before she left India," her father said here after the shocking news hit the family like a tsunami.
"She was passionate about her higher studies," he told, and almost choked recalling the moment when she had learned of her selection to the famed American university.
Shalini had landed in the US only last month to pursue the two-year masters programme in public health after completing her degree in dental surgery from ITS Dental College in Uttar Pradesh's Greater Noida.
She will be cremated in Bryan on Tuesday or Wednesday next week, according to the consulate sources.
Singh continued to be on life support till intervening night of Saturday and Sunday, according to the consulate officials.
According to their friends and some witnesses, Singh and Bhatia were swimming in the lake when a sudden current of water pushed them deeper.
The friends accompanying them noticed that the duo were in distress and flagged down nearby police officers.
Bryan Police officers were able to rescue and provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation to the victims until medics arrived.
Consul General of India in Houston, Dr Anupam Ray had been monitoring her medical needs and situation closely.
Around 13 million people were battling “catastrophic” flooding and torrential rains in the storm-ravaged Texas where Hurricane Harvey has wreaked havoc, claiming over 50 lives.
According to the local community leaders, at least 1,50,000 Indian-Americans live in and around Houston area and have been badly hit by the hurricane.
