SAN ANTONIO – The family of the man who died Thursday after accidentally cutting through a live electrical wire while landscaping trees in a Northwest Side neighborhood says his wife is expecting a child in two weeks.
Mike Zuniga, a 38-year-old part-time contractor, was electrocuted in the accident in the 100 block of Chesswood Drive.
His family told KSAT on Friday that Zuniga wasn’t even initially scheduled to be at the job site on Thursday. He was helping a friend with the landscaping job.
Zuniga leaves behind his wife of 10 years, Veronica Zuniga, who is pregnant and due in just two weeks.
Zuniga’s cousin, Kimberly Leyrer, says the family is incredibly sad.
“They had been trying to have a baby — she had just experienced a miscarriage — he was calling this the miracle baby,” Leyrer said.
FIRST REPORT: SAPD: Landscaper electrocuted, 2 injured after cutting power line while trimming trees
His sister, Elizabeth Zuniga, said the fatal accident happened three days after the family celebrated Mike's birthday and a week after they had a baby shower for the unborn son.
She says Mike Zuniga had just finished putting the baby's room together and that the nursery still smells of fresh paint.
She says Mike was always talking about his future with his son.
“He would say I’m going to take him to the ball games, I’m going to take him fishing he was excited to do all those things for him but he didn’t get to do that,” Elizabeth Zuniga said.
She says she was devastated when she got the call about her brother’s death.
“It broke my heart,” Elizabeth said. “I told God why didn’t he take me. Why did they have to take him."
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The family describes Michael as someone who was always helping others out, just how he was helping a friend out with the landscaping job Thursday.
Leyrer says he was a big-hearted, fun-loving person.
“He was funny he always joked around about anything if you were sad he would completely uplift you,” Leyrer said.
Michael’s wife told KSAT that she is naming the baby after her husband — Michael Messiah.
Kimberly Leyrer says she is raising money for Veronica, saying Michael was her only source of income. You can visit her Facebook page for more information.
To watch more about this heartbreaking story, watch KSAT 12's 5 pm broadcast.