‘God needed his angel’: Las Cruces teen dies after weeks in the hospital

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico -- A Las Cruces teenager loved and supported by hundreds in the community has died after weeks fighting in the hospital, her father confirmed.

"She fought, but God needed his angel," Manny Morales Jr. told ABC-7 on Wednesday.

As ABC-7 previously reported, at least 100 family members and friends of Khyana Sky Morales gathered in a parking lot across from her hospital room to celebrate her 19th birthday back on Oct. 13.

"We love you, K," said Marysol Verduzco, her mother, before releasing 19 balloons in the parking lot with Manny by her side.

On that day, all who loved Khyana packed that lot across from MountainView Regional Medical Center in the hopes that she would wake up and look outside. They celebrated her 19th birthday with food, music and her favorite movie: Lilo and Stitch.

Many would gather nightly for vigils in that lot, praying for her recovery.

In early October, paramedics rushed Khyana to the intensive care unit after she suffered from sudden cardiac arrest, her parents had told ABC-7.

After weeks fighting for her life in the intensive care unit, Morales Jr. confirmed that his daughter's health declined. He said they ultimately decided to transfer her to a long-term care facility.

On Saturday, his daughter died in hospice.

"Her mother and I were there for her last breath," Morales Jr. told ABC-7.