A girl who was shot along with four other teens when a student opened fire in a Washington state high school died of her injuries on Sunday, October 26, more than two days after the incident. Gia Soriano, 14, passed away at Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, raising the death toll of the shooting to three.
“We are devastated by this senseless tragedy. Gia is our beautiful daughter and words cannot express how much we will miss her. We’ve made the decision to donate Gia’s organs so that others may benefit. Our daughter was loving, kind and this gift honors her life,” said Soriano’s family in a statement, which was read by Dr. Joanne Roberts at a press conference held in the hospital. The Soriano family also thanked hospital workers for their care and asked that their privacy be respected at this time.
Washington school shooting: The family of Gia Soriano, 14, will donate her organs. http://t.co/PVj6kejboH pic.twitter.com/PlHdFTkF9m
— KTLA (@KTLA) October 27, 2014
Teen wounded in Washington school shooting, dies. http://t.co/eEx9ZZdOyj pic.twitter.com/spRtkVSySV
— Good Morning America (@GMA) October 27, 2014
Soriano was injured when a popular freshman student named Jaylen Fryberg opened fire in the cafeteria of Marysville-Pilchuck High School north of Seattle, on Friday, October 24. Fryberg also reportedly shot his cousins 15-year-old Andrew Fryberg and 14-year-old Nate Hatch, who remain in critical and serious condition, respectively, at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Other victims included 14-year-old Shaylee Chuckulnaskit, who is also in critical condition, as well as another female student who was shot dead by Fryberg on Friday before he was killed by what is believed may be a self-inflicted wound. As yet, it is unclear whether Fryberg shot himself intentionally or accidentally during a struggle with a teacher.
Marysville high school shooter Jaylen Fryberg was crowned Homecoming Prince last week http://t.co/Z9r6XYxbEy pic.twitter.com/ZnpLgBmwXK
— Global Grind (@GlobalGrind) October 24, 2014
Fryberg was the popular son of one of the prominent families of the Tulalip tribe. Members of the closely-knit community at the nearby Tulalip Indian reservation are apparently shaken by the incident. Matt Remle, a tribal guidance counselor, said that he knew some of the children involved in the shooting well, describing them as “really happy, smiling kids.” He said that no one knew what motivated Fryberg to do it.
“Maybe it would be easier if we knew the answer. But we may never know,” said Remle.