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Burning Man Officials Say Worker Died Overnight

RENO, Nev. (AP) — Burning Man officials are saying a man working to set up the site died of natural causes overnight.

The Reno Gazette Journal reports authorities have not confirmed the man's identity, but a letter to Burning Man staff says Scott "Spoono" Stephenson was in his late 50s when he died Wednesday "in the city he loved most."

Burning Man CEO Marian Goodell said in a statement that Stephenson had been a fixture of the event's public works department since 2005.

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Pershing County Sheriff's Sgt. Mike Stephens says an investigation is ongoing, and that an autopsy will be performed in Washoe County to determine a cause of death.

A memorial service is being planned.

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