An autopsy was planned for Monday to determine what caused the death of a 19-year-old Columbus State University student from Cobb County.
The Columbus Ledger Enquirer reported that Giselle Ortiz, a recent graduate of McEachern High School in Powder Springs, was stricken Saturday morning at her dorm on 10th Street in Columbus, and was pronounced dead at The Medical Center.
“She was in the dorm room and complained of not feeling well,” Muscogee County Coroner Buddy Bryan told the Ledger Enquirer. “She went into cardiac arrest.”
Bryan told the newspaper that while there was no preliminary cause of her death, Ortiz was taking medication for Lupus.
The music education student graduated last year from McEachern, where she played trombone in the band.
“Giselle was a wonderful young lady who was a leader and friend to everyone,” McEachern band director Jeff Harper posted on Facebook. “She was a shining star in the McEachern band.”
Harper and the rest of the McEachern band learned of Ortiz’s death early Sunday when they returned to port from a cruise to the Bahamas.
“The kids are a bit shocked, but supporting one another,” Harper said.
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