Eagle Rock Woman Dies After Falling from Balcony at UCSB

A former UC Santa Barbara student who suffered a fatal head injury in a fall that occurred during an amorous embrace was identified Sunday as an Eagle Rock resident who was celebrating her 22nd birthday.

Melissa Portillo and a boyfriend were kissing on the second-floor porch of an an Isla Vista apartment on Cordoba Road about 1 a.m. Saturday when the possibly alcohol-related accident happened, according to Santa Barbara County sheriff's deputies.

Portillo, who had her back to the railing, and the young man fell off the porch onto a paved parking lot. She was declared dead shortly afterward at a hospital, and the young man was taken to a hospital with head and back injuries, authorities said.

Portillo, who was a 2008 graduate of Eagle Rock High School, according to her Facebook page, earned a political science degree this past summer. She was expected to drive to her family's home in Eagle Rock Saturday, according to broadcast reports.