Juan Carlos Mendez-Alvarado died of natural causes while working at the new elementary school construction site, Iola Police Chief Jared Warner said.
Mendez-Alvarado’s body was found the afternoon of Jan. 31 in a portable restroom at the school construction site off North Kentucky Street after coworkers realized he had been missing that afternoon.
Preliminary autopsy reports indicate Mendez-Alvarado died of an aneurysm, Warner said.
He worked as a painter for a subcontractor and had done painting work at the science center at Iola High School, which opened in the fall.
The new elementary school is slated for completion later this year and will open in the fall.
