A 20-year-old woman who survived the attack at Pulse nightclub last year died in a wrong-way crash in Orange County over the weekend.

  • Jahqui Sevilla lost control of vehicle on SR 417, crashed head-on with SUV
  • Sevilla, SUV driver died at Florida Hospital
  • Sevilla survived Pulse attack last year
  • COMPLETE COVERAGE: Orlando United: Pulse Remembered

Troopers said Jahqui Sevilla lost control of her vehicle on State Road 417, crossed the center median and crashed head-on into an SUV, killing a 53-year-old Lakeland woman, Soraya Matias-Roth, early Sunday morning.

Both died at Florida Hospital East.

A Florida Highway Patrol spokesperson said Sevilla was at fault, and troopers think she was driving drunk.

After surviving the Pulse massacre in June 2016, Sevilla became an advocate in the LGBTQ community.

She was one of three Pulse survivors to ride on the AIDS Healthcare Foundation Pulse Float in the Rose Parade in California on Jan. 2, 2017.

Over the past year, Sevilla became close with Orlando Commissioner Patty Sheehan and Pulse owner Barbara Poma.

Poma wrote on Facebook:

"My heart is so broken with the loss of such a beautiful, pure soul. Jahqui Sevilla you are so loved, and I was so blessed to have gotten the chance to be in your life."

Sevilla was also a well-loved member of the Orlando Anarchy women's football team.  

She was at Pulse nightclub with several of her teammates on June 12, 2016. She survived the attack, but one of her coaches, Cory Connell, did not.

The Orlando Anarchy posted the following tribute to Sevilla on their Facebook page:  

"Jahqui Sevilla was taken from her family and her football family in a tragic automobile crash. Grief is not a sign of weakness. It is an emotional, physical and spiritual necessity of life. Grief allows each person time to turn a loss into a strong memory in the heart. When a person we love leaves us, we never lose them – they become more of a part of us. Jahqui Sevilla will always be in our hearts and a part of the Orlando Anarchy Family."

According to FHP, Sevilla's toxicology report is pending.