Connect with us

Austin, TX

Family of man who was electrocuted at Texas Tesla factory sues company

Published

on

Family of man who was electrocuted at Texas Tesla factory sues company


AUSTIN, Texas — The family of a man who died while working at the Gigafactory Texas is suing Tesla and others for wrongful death. They are requesting more than $1 million in damages. 


What You Need To Know

  • The lawsuit claims that Victor Joe Gomez Sr. was working as a contract electrician at the Tesla factory construction site on Aug. 1, 2024, when he was electrocuted
  • While Gomez was inspecting an electrical panel, he was unaware it had been energized, and it “immediately electrocuted him and knocked him unconscious,” the suit says
  • Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services were called to the factory and transported Gomez to Dell Seton Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead

The lawsuit claims that Victor Joe Gomez Sr. was working as a contract electrician at the Tesla factory construction site on Aug. 1, 2024, when he was electrocuted. 

Gomez was hired through Belcan Services Group L.P.–another one of the defendants in the lawsuit along with Tesla affiliate Colorado River Project, LLC–to inspect electrical panels before they were energized at the factory. While Gomez was inspecting one of the panels, he was unaware it had been energized, and it “immediately electrocuted him and knocked him unconscious,” the suit says. 

Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services were called to the factory and transported Gomez to Dell Seton Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. 

The family is asking for an investigation into the panel that electrocuted Gomez by an electrical engineering consulting expert hired by them. The suit also asks for the judge to issue a temporary restraining order to prevent destruction of any evidence at the factory. 

Advertisement

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration currently has an open safety investigation into the incident.



Source link

Austin, TX

Texas Capital Bank moving into Stonelake’s 415 Colorado in Austin

Published

on

Texas Capital Bank moving into Stonelake’s 415 Colorado in Austin


Texas Capital Bank has inked a lease at 415 Colorado in downtown Austin, and is set to move its San Jacinto Center branch into the building.

The Dallas-based bank is set to occupy the entire 17th floor and parts of the 16th floor of the 47-story building, according to the Austin Business Journal. 415 Colorado is mixed-use, and its 110,000 square-feet of office space is now 50% leased. Its residential portion, over 420,000 square-feet with 328 luxury apartment units, is 86% leased. 

Stonelake Capital Partners, which built and owns the building, has an office in the building. Edelman, Tree Line Capital Partners, and Valterra Partners are notable tenants at 415 Colorado, according to the outlet. 

Stream Realty’s Randy Cooper and Craig Wilson represented Texas Capital on the lease, according to the outlet.

Advertisement

Stonelaker recently  abandoned plans to redevelop 504 East 5th Street, just five blocks west of 415 Colorado. Stonelake did not comment on why it was abandoning the East 5th Street project, which used to be the site of downtown staple Carmelo’s Italian Restaurant. After scrapping the plans to build a 37-story apartment tower in 2025, Stonelake listed the half-acre property. 

During the pandemic, office space in Austin saw a rush of demand from tech companies relocating from California to the Texas state capital. That has slowed, and net absorption of office space in Austin was negative in 2025.

Hunter Cooke

Read more

Tale of Texas office markets: How Austin compares to rest of the Triangle

Advertisement
Stonelake Capital Partners Scraps Austin Multifamily Tower Plan

Stonelake scraps apartment tower plans in oversaturated market

Granite's Will Hendrickson, UBS' Sergio Ermotti, Stonelake Capital Partners’ John Kiltz and Kenneth Abbousie with 2323 Cedar Springs Road, Dallas

Granite’s 23Springs scores UBS, Stonelake leases





Source link

Continue Reading

Austin, TX

Austin lands top-5 spot on new list of best park systems in Texas

Published

on

Austin lands top-5 spot on new list of best park systems in Texas


Austin and its stellar park system were just ranked the fifth-best in Texas, according to the newly released ParkScore Index.

Every year, land conservation nonprofit Trust for Public Land rates the park systems in the 100 largest American cities with regard to their accessibility, equity, acreage, investment, and amenities.

On a national level, the best park systems are located in Washington, D.C. (No. 1); Irvine, California (No. 2); Minneapolis (No. 3) and St. Paul (No. 4), Minnesota; and Cinncinati, Ohio (No. 5).

Austin’s No. 47 ParkScore ranking in 2026 is a solid improvement over last year’s No. 54 rank.

Advertisement

The organization attributes much of the city’s progress to numerous recent new parks in South Austin and downtown, which have dramatically increased the percentage of residents that live within close proximity of a park — a crucial metric in the report’s methodology. Currently, 76 percent of Austinites live within a 10-minute walk of a park, compared to 68 percent last year.

“Ten years ago, only 48 percent of Austin residents lived within a 10-minute walk of a park,” a release said. “The city’s dedication to opening new parks in park-deficient neighborhoods is paying off.”

Austin also spends far more to maintain its park system — a three-year average of about $236 per resident — than the national average $154 per resident. The Austin City Council is currently considering a $260 million bond investment that would benefit the local park system and Austin’s Parks and Recreation Department.

Elsewhere in Texas, Plano and Frisco in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex boast the best park systems in the state.

Molly Morgan, the Texas State Director and Associate Vice President of Trust for Public Land, said in the release that Texas’ high-scoring performance in the annual index has proved that it is making park accessibility a statewide priority.

Advertisement

“Cities across the Lone Star State are making serious investments, opening new parks, partnering with school districts, and closing gaps that have existed for decades,” Morgan said. “They’re showing what’s possible when Texas gets serious about parks.”

Morgan added that there’s still more work to be done to increase park accessibility to the 9 million Texans that don’t have a park within a 10-minute walk of their homes.

Here’s how the rest of Texas stacks up in the national ranking:

  • No. 13 – Plano
  • No. 30 – Frisco
  • No. 38 – Dallas
  • No. 45 – Arlington
  • No. 58 – Fort Worth
  • No. 61 – San Antonio and El Paso (tied)
  • No. 64 – Garland
  • No. 69 – Houston
  • No. 71 – Irving
  • No. 72 – Corpus Christi
  • No. 77 – Laredo
  • No. 96 – Lubbock



Source link

Continue Reading

Austin, TX

Live updates: Scattered storms make their way through Central Texas

Published

on

Live updates: Scattered storms make their way through Central Texas


AUSTIN (KXAN) – Severe thunderstorms are moving through Central Texas Thursday evening. Here is the latest forecast from the First Warning Weather team.

Here are the main headlines:

Thursday

9:04 p.m.: KXAN viewer Tiffany Morgan sent in this photo from Pflugerville.

Sunset in Pflugerville (Courtesy: Tiffany Morgan)

8:29 p.m.: KXAN’s Andy Way is in Georgetown and sent in this photo of the orange sky.

Advertisement

8:14 p.m.: KXAN’s Madison Myers is in Marble Falls tracking the storms and sent in this video.

8:00 p.m.: See Austin area rainfall totals here.

7:30 p.m.: Low Water Crossing #6 7748 Spicewood Springs Rd in Austin is closed.

7:22 p.m.: Oncor is reporting a power outage in Taylor affecting almost 1,500 customers. The full Oncor outage map can be found here.

7:11 p.m.: Austin Energy is reporting one power outage affecting 1,500+ customers in west Austin, north of Emma Long Metro Park, in the Glenlake neighborhood.

7:06 p.m.: Multiple road closures are being reported in Marble Falls.

Advertisement
  • 800 Blk Ave L  Between Broadway St. & Ninth St.
  • 1300 Blk Broadway St (Childress Park) Between Ave L & Ave N
  • 800 Blk Main St. Between Broadway St. & Ninth St.

6:49 p.m.: A Flash Flood Warning is in effect for northwestern Blanco, southwestern Burnet and southeastern Llano until 9:45 p.m. Life threatening flash flooding is possible with this storm.



Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending