HIAWATHA, Kan. (AP) - The family of a 9-year-old Kansas girl say she has died after being diagnosed with the flu in neighboring Nebraska.

The family of Leighya Marie DeLong, of Hiawatha, confirmed to Topeka television station KSNT that the girl died on Dec. 22 in Lincoln, Nebraska, while she was visiting family there for the Christmas holiday.

The girl’s family say she was diagnosed with the flu at a Lincoln hospital on Dec. 21, released, then saw her condition worsen the next day. She died shortly after being rushed back to the emergency room.

Leighya’s grandmother, Cherryl DeLong, told the station that Leighya, her brother and their mother had recently moved to Kansas.

Hiawatha School District Superintendent Lonnie Moser confirmed that Leighya was a fourth-grader at Hiawatha Elementary School. Moser said counselors will be available to students and staff to help cope with the loss.

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