UC Santa Barbara student killed in 2-story fall

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KABC) -- A University of California, Santa Barbara student was killed and a young man was hospitalized after they fell from a second-story apartment building.

Officials say 22-year-old Melissa Portillo, who is from Los Angeles, was celebrating her birthday early Thursday morning and was out on the balcony with 22-year-old Michael Kuster when they both fell.

Investigators say Portillo and Kuster were kissing against the railing when they fell.

"That was the first thing I noticed was a pool of blood and I saw them carrying the girl out on a stretcher I didn't recognize who she was and didn't seem like she lived here," said neighbor Daniel Ahumada.

Kuster is from the Netherlands and is here visiting friends. He was transported to an area hospital, where he was in stable condition and later released.

Officials say alcohol may have been a factor in the fall. They do not suspect foul play. Neither one lived at the apartment complex.

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