A Romanian woman who plunged into the River Thames from Westminster bridge during the attack near the Houses of Parliament in London last month has died, raising the death toll to five, the Metropolitan police said on Friday.
Andreea Cristea, 31, had been receiving medical treatment after being seriously injured during the incident on March 22. Her life support was turned off on Thursday.
Formal identification has yet to take place, but police said in a statement that they believed the woman to be Cristea.
Cristea's partner, Andrei Burnaz — who was also injured in the attack — paid tribute to her in a statement provided by the Met: "After fighting for her life for over two weeks, our beloved and irreplaceable Andreea — wonderful daughter, sister, partner, dedicated friend and the most unique and life loving person you can imagine — was cruelly and brutally ripped away from our lives in the most heartless and spiritless way.
"She will always be remembered as our shining ray of light that will forever keep on shining in our hearts," he said.
He added that all the money that had been raised by members of the public for her recovery would now be donated to charity — "she would not have it any other way," Burnaz said.
"There are no words to even begin to describe the crushing pain and emptiness that is left in our hearts.
"Our family, together with Andrei, are deeply touched and eternally grateful for the unimaginable efforts and never-ending dedication provided to her and us by the entire medical personnel of each and every hospital involved. Their kindness and empathy are beyond compare," he said.
Burnaz and Christea had been in London celebrating his birthday at the time of the attack.
The Romanian ambassador to the UK, Dan Mihalache, had previously said he believed the attacker Khalid Masood had hit Burnaz after mounting the pavement, before striking Christea, causing her to fall into Thames, the BBC reported. Police have yet to give an account of how Christea ended up in the river, however.
Christea becomes the fifth victim of the attack, after US tourist Kurt Cochran, police officer Keith Palmer, retired window cleaner Leslie Rhodes, and teacher Aysha Frade.