Body of Missing SpaceX Employee Found

RIP.

Case Closed

The body of a missing SpaceX employee has been found near a beach close to the company's testing facilities in Boca Chica, Texas.

According to the US Coast Guard, the body of Kevin Edward Escobar was recovered Monday evening, not far from where he was first reported lost early Sunday morning.

Local law enforcement was first notified of a swimmer in distress near the beach. A different SpaceX staffer had reported that their coworker was not able to swim back to shore and that they couldn't reach him due to strong currents and high tides.

In short, it's an unfortunate incident highlighting the ever-present dangers of swimming in open waters. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 4,5000 people died due to drowning each year from 2020 to 2022 in the US — the first increase after decades of decline.

Launch Activities

According to 2023 estimates, more than 2,100 full-time workers are employed at the company's Starbase complex.

The search was originally called off Sunday evening, the US Coast Guard announced at the time. Rescue crews had covered over 205 square miles of nearby beach before suspending the search.

Coincidentally, local county officials announced on Monday that Boca Chica Beach and the nearby Highway 4 would be temporarily closed Wednesday evening due to "SpaceX non-flight testing activities."

The company's industrial complex, dubbed Starbase, has seen several recent orbital launch attempts of the Elon Musk-led company's gigantic Starship spacecraft, activities that critics say have wreaked havoc with the surrounding natural environment.

One test launch last year sent massive pieces of rocket debris raining down on the nearby Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge, which is home to several migratory birds that cover thousands of miles to lay eggs there.

More on SpaceX: SpaceX Sues California for Violating Elon Musk’s Right to Free Speech