NASA announced that a worker died on a launch pad in Florida on the morning of March 14. He was James D. Vanover, an engineer. He was a contract worker for United Space Alliance. He fell at about 7:40 a.m. at Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Pad 39A. Emergency medical personnel were not able to revive him.
United Space Alliance Chief Executive Officer Virginia Barnes expressed her sorrow and sympathy in an official statement. “Our heartfelt sympathy goes out to the family of Mr. Vanover,” Barnes said. “Our focus right now is on providing support for the family, and for his coworkers.” NASA said in a statement, “Right now our focus is on our workers and for the family of the USA employee.”
Work on the launch pad was suspended, and workers received employee assistance and counseling.
The cause of the incident is being investigated. Barnes stated, “We are also providing our full support to investigating officials in order to determine the cause of the incident as quickly as possible. Until that investigation is complete, it would be inappropriate to provide further comment on the details.”
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