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1 of 2 St. Croix River survivors upgraded to serious condition

Star Tribune

Last update: April 24, 2008 - 12:12 AM

The condition of one of the survivors from the recent St. Croix River accident in Stillwater has been upgraded from critical to serious.

Jennifer Kovacich, a spokeswoman for Regions Hospital in St. Paul, said Wednesday that Deepa Vellusamy, 25, was in serious condition. On Tuesday, the hospital listed her in critical condition.

The other survivor -- Kalaiselvi Vijayakumar, 25 -- remained in critical condition Wednesday, Kovacich said.

The two women survived a car accident April 13 in Stillwater. They were on a sightseeing trip along with two other friends. About 10 p.m. their rented SUV somehow plunged into the St. Croix River about a quarter-mile north of the city's famous lift bridge.

Their car became submerged in the dark, icy waters, and rescuers had to break a window to free the four friends.

Mohanraj Pothiraj, 28, and Rohini Krishnamurthy, 27, died last week at Regions. The cause of death in both cases was complications from hypothermia and near drowning, said Don Gorrie of the Ramsey County medical examiner's office.

All four are residents of India who have been working in the Twin Cities at Ameriprise Financial in Minneapolis. They are contractors from Infosys Technologies, based in Bangalore.

Police continue to investigate the accident.

ALLIE SHAH