|
Only have a minute? Listen instead |
On Friday morning at approximately 5:30 a.m., Pct. 2 and 3 Justice of the Peace Mary Esther Sorola said she received a call from Valley Regional Medical Center in Brownsville about the death of a man at SpaceX.
The hospital told Sorola that 25-year-old Jose Bautista from Donna was working on a scaffold at SpaceX when he fell down 8 feet. SpaceX private emergency medical services (EMS) transported Bautista to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 5:15 a.m., she said.
“That’s the only thing Valley Regional reported to me,” Sorola stated. She ordered an autopsy and preliminary results show that Bautista died from blunt force trauma from the fall.
The city of Starbase on Tuesday said it extended its condolences to the family and loved ones of an individual who died at SpaceX, but referred inquiries to the company.
“The City extends its condolences to the family and loved ones of the individual who passed away,” Starbase City Administrator Cayetana Polanco said in a written statement. “SpaceX’s operations and workplace matters are not within the City’s purview. We defer all inquiries regarding this incident to SpaceX, the relevant contracting company, and the appropriate authorities.”
Cameron County Sheriff Manuel Treviño said that his team responded to reports of an injured person on the scene Friday around 3:30 a.m. “Once it was determined that it was a non-criminal incident, personnel from SpaceX took over,” he said.
Treviño stated that his office would not release the name of the victim.
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) said that it is investigating the incident and that more details will be available after the investigation is complete.
SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the incident.
Editor’s note: This story and its headline have been updated to reflect new information.