ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A teen girl has died from her injuries after a lightning strike last month in St. Petersburg, her family confirmed.
Ashley King, 16, died on Monday morning after nearly a month in the hospital, according to a GoFundMe page organized by her aunt.
"It had become clear over the past few days that the injuries Ashley suffered were too great to overcome. Fight as she did, we are deeply saddened to share that our girl couldn’t make it back to be with us, in this life," her aunt, Kellie Tickell, wrote.
Ashley was with three other teens around 5:45 p.m. on July 25 in downtown St. Pete. They were standing under the banyan tree on the corner of 3rd Avenue NE and Beach Drive NE when the lightning struck, fire rescue crews said at the time.
Ashley went into cardiac arrest, but her pulse returned as paramedics were pulling into Orlando Health Bayfront Hospital in St. Pete, according to the fire department. She was upgraded to a trauma alert upon arrival.
The three others — another 16-year-old girl, a 16-year-old boy and a 17-year-old boy — were hospitalized with other injuries, including burns related to the lightning strike.
"At 12:23am Ashley took her last breath. She will live on forever in our hearts & thoughts. All we have now are the memories of her, which I will cherish every single one," Ashley's mother, Toni King, wrote on Facebook.
"Every moment of her too short time with us lightened our hearts and made the world feel radiant. Her family and friends will forever hold her memory close and strive to share her passion for life with others in her name," Tickell added.