Texas school shooting: Husband of slain teacher dies 'of grief'

The husband of one of the teachers slain in Tuesday's mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas has reportedly died of a heart attack just two days later.

Joe Garcia was the husband of Irma Garcia, who taught for 23 years at Robb Elementary School.

Mrs Garcia was one of the two teachers killed by a gunman that left 21 dead - including 19 children.

The couple - who were married for 24 years - is survived by four children.

On Twitter, a nephew of Mrs Garcia, John Martinez, said that Mr Garcia "passed away due to grief" in the wake of his wife's murder.

A local Fox affiliate has reported that Mr Garcia died of a fatal heart attack.

The Garcia's leave behind four children - two boys and two girls - ranging from 12 to 23 years old.

In the aftermath of the deadly shooting in Uvalde, Mr Martinez told the New York Times that Mrs Garcia was found by officers "embracing children in her arms pretty much until her last breath".

"She sacrificed herself protecting the kids in her classroom," he wrote on a fundraising page. "She was a hero".

Mrs Garcia and the other teacher killed in the shooting, Eva Mireles, had been teaching together for five years and had more than 40 years of experience between them.

News of Mr Garcia's passing comes amid mounting calls for gun reform in the US.

Earlier on Thursday, activist groups rallied alongside lawmakers at the US Capitol in Washington DC to call for more gun control measures to be put in place.

"This is a choice. This is not inevitable. This is not unchangeable," said Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut.

"We're the only country in the world in which our kids go to school wondering whether they will survive the day," he added.