The horrific death of an airport ground worker in the US state of Texas who was sucked into a passenger jet engine has been ruled a suicide by the local medical examiner.
The Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office on Monday said 27-year-old David Renner died of blunt and sharp force injuries at San Antonio International Airport, local media outlet KEN 5 reported.
The Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death a suicide, it said.
The worker’s death occurred at about 10.25 pm (local time) as a Delta Air Lines flight which had just arrived in San Antonio, Texas from Los Angeles was taxiing to an arrival gate with one engine running when he was killed on Friday.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said the employee was "ingested" into the engine of the plane.
An investigation was initially launched by the NTSB, but it came to a halt on Monday after the medical examiner confirmed suicide as the cause of the death, cbsaustin.com reported.
“The NTSB will not be opening an investigation into this event. There were no operational safety issues with either the airplane or the airport,” it quoted an NTSB spokesperson as saying.
The family of Renner says he was working for a company that Delta Air Lines contracts for ground support.
"We are heartbroken and grieving the loss of an aviation family member's life in San Antonio. Our hearts and full support are with their family, friends and loved ones during this difficult time,” a statement from the airline read.
Renner was employed by Unifi Aviation, a company which several airlines contract to assist with ground handling operations.
Unifi Aviation has said it will have grief counsellors on site through Tuesday.
Earlier, the company said in a statement that it is "deeply saddened" by the tragic incident.
"Our hearts go out to the family of the deceased, and we remain focused on supporting our employees on the ground and ensuring they are being taken care of during this time," it said.
"From our initial investigation, this incident was unrelated to Unifi’s operational processes, safety procedures and policies. Out of respect for the deceased, we will not be sharing any additional information," it added.
San Antonio firefighters and police officers were the first to respond to the worker’s death late on Friday.
A similar incident occurred late last year in Alabama when an airport worker was pulled into a plane engine.
On Wednesday, regional airline Piedmont was fined USD 15,625 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for the death of a ground crew worker in the Alabama incident.
"Proper training and enforcement of safety procedures could have prevented this tragedy," said OSHA Area Director Jose A Gonzalez in Mobile, Alabama.
"This incident is a tragic reminder that safety measures must be in place even for a routine assignment," Gonzalez said in a statement.
A subsidiary of American Airlines, Piedmont Airlines Inc. is based in Salisbury, Maryland.
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