The Northeastern University community is grieving to the tragic death of Jaahnavi Kandula. She was a graduate student who was hit by a Seattle Police Department SUV. The collision occurred while she was using the crosswalk to walk through a Seattle intersection.
A collection of flowers, candles, and pictures of the 23-year-old engineering student has been accumulating over the past week to form a makeshift memorial.
In 2021, Kandula moved to Seattle from Bengaluru, India to study a master’s degree in information systems at the College of Engineering. She was expected to complete her degree in December 2023.
On the evening of January 24th, the Seattle Police Department reported that a marked patrol vehicle and a pedestrian had been involved in an accident.
Authorities stated that the officer, who has not been named, was driving to a ‘priority one call’ with the fire department when the collision happened. This individual has been with the police force since November of 2019.
Officers were dispatched to the scene of the crash and encountered Kandula with serious and life-threatening injuries. Police officers administered CPR until the Seattle Fire Department could arrive, after which Kandula was taken to a nearby hospital.
At the hospital, she eventually succumbed to her injuries. The authorities are still piecing together the events that led up to the fatal accident through an investigation.