STONE MOUNTAIN, Ga. — A metro Atlanta woman left hurt after a deadly volcanic eruption in New Zealand two weeks ago has died, a family friend confirmed to 11Alive.
The family friend told 11Alive Mayuri "Mary" Singh died at a New Zealand hospital Sunday morning after complications with her treatment that included skin grafts.
According to Roger Da Silva, Singh had burns on 70 percent of her body related to the eruption. Her husband Pratap, known as "Paul," was burned on 40 percent of his body, and still remains in the hospital.
Roger, who worked with the couple, called them "beautiful, incredible people."
The Singhs were survivors of a violent Dec. 9 volcanic eruption that killed 17 people and burned more than a dozen on New Zealand's White Island, located about 30 miles off the coast of the country's north island.
Reporting from the Associated Press said that 47 tourists, including nine Americans, were exploring on the island's moon-like surface as part of an excursion during a Royal Caribbean cruise aboard the Ovation of the Seas when the volcano erupted, sending a plume of toxic ash and smoke billowing into the air.
Survivors of the powerful eruption ran into the sea to escape the scalding steam and ash and emerged covered in burns, say those who first helped them.
Rescuers recovered multiple bodies in the days after the volcano, but dangerous conditions, including increased seismic activity, toxic air and heavy rains immediately after, hindered rescue operations.
New Zealand volcano
Crews had still been searching for the bodies of two missing victims - 17-year-old Winona Langford of Sydney and 40-year-old New Zealander Hayden Marshall-Inman - up until Dec. 17, but New Zealand authorities now believe the two bodies may have been washed out to sea during a storm soon after the eruption and may never be found. The AP reports crews spotted a male body in the water near the island two days after, but large waves prevented them from recovering it before it sank.
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