The Route 91 Harvest Festival massacre, which took place on October 1, 2017 in Las Vegas, has claimed another victim.
The shooting, which remains the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history, claimed its 59th victim over the weekend, as festivalgoer Kim Gervais succumbed to her injuries.
The victim’s sister, Dena Sarvela, confirmed her death to Fox 12 Oregon.
“She is, was, she still is… she’ll never leave my heart, ever,” she told the news organization.
Kim Gervais attended the festival, which was headlined that evening by Jason Aldean, with two friends. Sadly, only one of them walked away without injuries.
“She was in the hospital, rendered quadriplegic, and the other one, she saw die in front of her,” Sarvela explained.
Gervais reportedly passed away on Friday evening (Nov. 15) after her heart stopped beating.
“She hurt. Even though she was paralyzed from the neck up, she could feel all the pain,” Sarvela said. “There was scrap metal still in her because he used exploding bullets.”
The two years since the shooting were not easy for Gervais.
“It took almost a year before she was able to transport out to go back home to California, that was rough,” Sarvela shared. “She lost her zest for life because of it, because of the shooting, because of her injuries that she sustained. It was hard to be that same person, that we all know and love.”
The two spoke the night before the concert and Gervais shared her plans to soon retire, Sarvela revealed.
“She was going to sell the business, she was ready to just go abroad and enjoy life, like she should have, and it was snatched from her,” she said. “She worked her life, and butt off for – just to go enjoy, you know, and she doesn’t get that, she doesn’t get that chance.”
Sarvela said her sister’s passing is a bit bittersweet. She’s sad to lose her, but knowing that Gervais is now reunited with her husband, who passed away in 2000, makes it a little easier to digest.
“I also know she was missing her husband very, very much, and that’s what gives me hope – that she’s with him right now. Gives me a lot of hope, and I know they are,” she said.
Kim Gervais is the 59th victim of the deadly 2017 Las Vegas shooting. Over 400 others were wounded in the massacre.
