Houston logging company contractor dies of possible electrocution

A contractor for a Houston logging company may have died of electrocution while working in Jamaica Beach on Friday, police said.

Elmer Ernesto Meza Ramirez, 39, was pronounced dead by the Jamaica Fire Department around noon Friday in the 16700 block of Kingston Way, according to a Facebook post from the City of Jamaica Beach. Jamaica Beach is a town located on the west end of Galveston Island.

Police believe Ramirez may have been electrocuted after accidentally touching a hot wire, based on his injuries and an account from Ramirez’s father, who had been hired by a homeowner to trim trees with Ramirez, a Jamaica Beach Police Chief Raymond Garivey Jr. said Sunday.

The Galveston County Medical Examiner’s Office is still working to confirm the official cause of death through an autopsy, Garivey said.

Police believe Ramirez may have touched a hot wire causing the hours-long power outages in the area, Garivey said. The area’s utility is CenterPoint Energy, according to a city post on Facebook.