Crime & Safety
Update: Coroner Confirms Former Capuchino Student Among Those Killed in Explosion, Fire
Friends of fire victim Jessica Morales, 20, say she loved to laugh.
The mood at Capuchino High School today was sad and depressed, students said, as they worried about the fate of a former student who they hadn't heard from since Thursday's night explosion and fire.
Tonight a coroner confirmed what students today already knew: Jessica Morales, 20, was killed in the blaze, while her boyfriend Joseph Ruigomez barely escaped alive. He is in critical condition in a San Francisco hospital.
"Everybody loved her," said Abbey Bautista of Morales, who graduated from the school two years ago. "She's a crazy girl who loved to laugh and laughed at everything."
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Morales attended Capuchino High School, but graduated from Peninsula High School in 2008.
Matt Biggar, assistant superintendent of San Mateo Unified schools, said 15 counselors were on hand today to assist students in the high school library.
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He estimated that about six students lost their homes and said most of them did not come to school today.
"It was a sad and depressing day," said student Betsy Brambila. "Some students were crying."
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