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| Zhou Danling |
Identified by her father in China as Lü Lingzi, the tragic student was pursuing a graduate degree at Boston University (BU) in Mathematics and Statistics.
Lingzi was attending the Boston marathon with her friend Zhou Danling, a student of actuarial science at BU, who suffered serious injuries in the blast and fell into a coma and is currently showing signs of improvement at Boston Medical Center.
The other two fatalities in the bombing have been identified as 8-year-old Martin Richard, the son of a Dorchester community activist, and 29-year-old restaurant manager Krystle Campbell.
Another 183 people were injured, according to the latest official tally.
Speaking to the MailOnline before Lü’s death was confirmed, her best friend Li Luquan, 23, said, ‘Lingzi went to the marathon with three friends, one of whom was Zhou Danling and another girl who came home safe.
‘Lingzi did not come home on Monday night and I called the police and notified the Chinese consulate.
‘She’s my best friend, I miss her so much. We were roommates for two years at university in China. All her friends here miss her very much.
The third victim of the Boston marathon has been identified as Lü Lingzi, pictured, from Beijing, who was pursuing a graduate degree at BU in Mathematics and Statistics
‘Nobody knows where she is.’
On Tuesday the Chinese Foreign Ministry and Consulate General in New York said they were not releasing the victim’s name at the request of the family.
But later on Tuesday, Boston media quoted a Chinese Consulate General official as saying Chinese national Lü Lingzi was missing in the wake of the bombings that killed three and wounded more than 180 people.
Li Luquan, who is an operations research student at New Jersey State University said that Lü was studying hard at BU and enjoyed cooking, going to the gym and to play the piano.
‘She came the the US last August and studied at Boston University because she wanted a better education. America has a better education system and better research opportunities,’ said Luquan to the MailOnline.
‘Coming to America to study was her dream. She was living her dream.
‘In the future she might stay in the US or go back to China. She said she might work for a big company in America.
‘She has an aunt who lives elsewhere in the US and I think she has come to Boston to find her.’
Earlier on Tuesday, Colin Riley, a BU spokesman had declined to release the student’s name pending a discussion with her family.
On Wednesday however, The Shenyang Evening News reported her name on its official Twitter-like microblog account.
The Associated Press reported that an editor at the newspaper said that Lingzi’s father confirmed his daughter’s death when reporters visited the family home.
According to the Boston Globe on Tuesday, BU did confirm that three of their students had attended the marathon and that one was sadly deceased, one was injured and another escaped unharmed.
Danling Zhou, who was reported to have fallen into a coma, was now doing well and was conscious.
‘She has her friends around her, and she will soon have family around her,’ said Riley.
The Chinese Consulate in New York had earlier confirmed that Zhou Danling was injured and a survivor of the attacks which killed two others and left 183 others injured.
‘She cannot talk now but can communicate with pen and paper,’ the consulate said in an e-mailed statement previously on Tuesday.
In that earlier statement, the consulate said another Chinese student, identified by the consulate as Lü Lingzi, was still missing.
‘We are following the case closely and are trying to reach our colleagues in Boston. I believe they will release further information on site if anything comes up,’ the consulate said, adding ‘Our hearts goes out to all the families who had been affected.’
Robert Hill, dean of Marsh Chapel, said he had visited Zhou Danling twice and said she underwent surgery on Monday and on Tuesday, according to Boston University Today.
‘She is doing well,’ says Hill. ‘She has her friends around her, and she will soon have family around her.’
Zhou is reportedly a graduate of Wuhan University in central China, and currently a student at Boston University in actuarial science, according to a Xinhua report.
Boston is filled with colleges and there are a handful of students among the 183 injured.
Three Tufts University students, seven Emerson College students, three Northeastern University students, two Boston College students, and one Berklee College of Music student, according to the schools.
Boston College identified its two injured students as M.B.A. candidate Liza Cherney and law student Brittany Loring, according to Boston.com.
‘The two spectators were hospitalized with injuries resulting from the explosions near the Marathon finish line,’ the school said.
@MailOnline
