Sacred Heart University Student One Of 3 Killed In Massachusetts Crash

FAIRFIELD, CT — A Sacred Heart University grad student was one of the three college students killed in a two-vehicle crash early Tuesday in Sheffield, Massachusetts, reported the Hartford Courant.

Prem Kumar Goda, 27, was attending Sacred Heart's Welch College of Business and Technology at the time of his death. The other two grad students who were killed, Sai Narasimha Patamsetti and Pavani Gullapally, both 22, attended the University of New Haven.

Four other grad students, all from UNH, were also injured in the crash; they were in the minivan that was carrying Goda, Patamsetti and Gullapally. The driver of the other vehicle in the crash, a 46-year-old Sheffield man, was also injured in the crash, which occurred at about 5:30 a.m. on Route 7 in Sheffield.

A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to assist Goda's family in India, and as of Thursday afternoon, it had raised more than $47,000 toward a goal of $100,000.

"One of the three deceased is Prem Kumar Goda, my cousin’s son," wrote Sudhakar Jale, organizer of the GoFundMe effort. "His parents and a sister live in India. Prem finished his Engineering in India and came to the US only three months ago for his MS.

"He comes from a very poor background and has borrowed money to come here. The family is left with a huge debt and not in a position to pay. I am reaching out for your help to raise money to pay off the debt and help his family."

According to Catherine McCabe, dean of the Welch College of Business and Technology, the flag at Sacred Heart was lowered to half-staff in Goda's memory.

To view the GoFundMe page in honor of Prem Kumar Goda, click here.

Read the Hartford Courant story.

Editor's note, GoFundMe is a Patch promotional partner.