Saffie Rose Roussos was donning a white Ariana Grande t-shirt at the pop singer’s concert in the British city of Manchester on Monday night. In the wake of the deadly attack inside the concert hall – that left 22 dead – the eight-year-old went missing, with Twitter and Facebook users imploring people to come forward with information about her whereabouts.
Hours later, Saffie’s primary school confirmed that she was one of the 22 victims. So far, she is the youngest known victim.
"The thought that anyone could go out to a concert and not come home is heartbreaking," head teacher Chris Upton told Reuters.
Saffie was simply a beautiful little girl in every aspect of the word.Chris Upton
Mother, Sister in Hospital
The eight-year-old Saffie was attending the concert with her mother, Lisa, and sister Ashlee Bromwich. It is reported that they are both undergoing treatment at separate hospitals.
Twitter Aggrieved
Twitter users had earlier asked for information on the girl, much like details regarding the whereabouts of several other missing people was shared on the micro blogging site.
First Victim an 18-Year-Old
Saffie was the second known victim. The first victim to have been identified was Georgina Callander, an 18-year-old fan. Runshaw College, where Callander was a health and social care student, had earlier released a statement condoning her death.
The statement read:
It is with enormous sadness that it appears that one of the people who lost their lives in Monday’s Manchester attack was one of our students here at Runshaw College [...]
Callander appeared to be a big fan of Grande’s, having shared photos of herself and the singer from an earlier concert on her social media accounts.
(With inputs from Reuters, The Guardian and The New York Times)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)