Kumar Siddhartha, Pune
“Akul was found after 10 hours, rather than immediately after he was reported missing, when he could still be saved,” Akul’s family said, an Indian-origin 18-year-old college student, who died because of hypothermia as per Champaign County Coroner’s office’s statement in a press release on 20th February.
Akul Dhawan, was found dead near a club after he went out with his friend for a night out. In Urbana, he studied at the University of Illinois. One of Akul’s friends contacted the campus police around 1:23 am on the same day, after repeated failed attempts to reach his phone. The police conducted an area wide search of the premises but was unable to find Akul and the police contacted his friends for the same. He was found the next day, laying on a concrete step, at 11 am. The temperature in this area goes around -2 degrees Celsius. Dhawan was out drinking with his friend at the Canopy Club that day but they were denied entry around 11:30 p.m. when they tried to enter again into the club.
“An acute alcohol intoxication and the prolonged exposure to extremely cold temperatures significantly contributed to his death,” said the coroner’s office, which also added he was pronounced dead on the spot.
Akul’s family stated “police never searched for our son,” in a local newspaper.
“The university community and police department are heartbroken with the outcome of this tragedy, though they certainly do acknowledge that the depth of their grief cannot compare with that of the Dhawan family,” the campus police spokesperson said, expressing their sorrows. According to a paper, they stated that their thoughts are still with them. As per the report, the spokesperson also added that their highest priority is the safety of their community and students. The officers and non-sworn staff respond as quickly as possible when they are called to check on the welfare of the students, and that their actions are based on that of the information they are provided by the caller or discovered during the immediate response.
Parents of Akul Dhawan said that the university did not notify them of any concern before the death. They wrote that, “They never thought they’d receive such news in their life.” They added, “we have a big massive hole left in our family; we will never be the same.”