Subscribe
German and U.S. sources confirmed that a U.S. airman from Ramstein Air Base near Kaiserslautern died in a fall at this disco, Nachtschicht, in the city.

German and U.S. sources confirmed that a U.S. airman from Ramstein Air Base near Kaiserslautern died in a fall at this disco, Nachtschicht, in the city. (Marcus Kloeckner/Stars and Stripes)

This story was updated at 1:30 p.m. EDT, July 10.

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — A 26-year-old U.S. airman died early Saturday, after jumping over a 6-foot fence and falling about 25 feet, police in Kaiserslautern said. The incident happened outside a disco in the city, and the man was under the influence of alcohol, the police said.

The airman was identified as Joseph Lopez, a senior airman with the 86th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Ramstein Air Base, according to Air Force Capt. John Ross, a spokesman at Ramstein. Ross said Lopez was from Pleasanton, Calif.

Ross said Lopez’s squadron was in contact with his family. He said Lopez was not married.

German police Chief Commissioner Dietmar Schmidt said the incident was still under investigation, but was being viewed as an accident. He said German and U.S. military police were conducting the investigation.

Ross said Lopez fell from a two-story parking garage in downtown Kaiserslautern, but could not provide any further details about the location.

German police would say only that it happened outside a disco in the Zollamtstrasse. German and U.S. sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to give details of the investigation, confirmed that the incident happened at a disco called Nachtschicht (which translates to Nightshift).

A call to the disco went unanswered Sunday.

Sign Up for Daily Headlines

Sign up to receive a daily email of today's top military news stories from Stars and Stripes and top news outlets from around the world.

Sign Up Now