ABC-7’s open records request reveals names of all Sun Metro explosion victims
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Open records connected to the Sun Metro bus explosion requested by ABC-7 have just been released. ABC-7 has spent nearly a month trying to obtain these and other connected documents through open records requests. The City of El Paso appealed to the Texas Attorney General to prevent the release of documents, however, these records were still released this afternoon.
The records reveal for the first time that the vehicle that exploded was a bus. The records also list those injured in the explosion. They are Ricardo Morales, Cruz Javier Castro, Veronica Mejia, Daniel Meza, Victor Adrian Ramirez Soria, Edith Berenice Ramirez, and the two Sun Metro employees who died, German Garcia and Ruben Ibarra. The documents state that Ramirez Soria obtained the legal counsel of Scherr Law Firm. Ramirez Soria's attorneys are actively requesting the release of numerous documents connected to the explosion.
Jose Antonio Castrellon, Filiberto Martin Del Campo, and Nicholas Alexander Rosales are listed as witnesses.
The records reveal that the officers who arrived at the scene met with Dwayne Arnold Thomas, who called 911 to report the explosion. Thomas and the other witnesses told the officers that a bus was being inspected in one of the terminals when the explosion happened. The fire was then contained by the fire department and the injured were "turned over to medical staff."
ABC-7 reported on the explosion live from the scene when it happened on February 11, 2025. We reported on the death of Ruben Ibarra a few days later, as well as the death of German Garcia yesterday.
The newly obtained documents reveal that, as of February 21, 2025, the records of Internal Safety Inspections for the last two years at the bay and lift where the explosion happened cannot currently be retrieved as they are in the building, with access restricted by the City's Chief Building Inspector.
