GUAYAQUIL, Ecuador — A Roman Catholic priest in southwestern Ecuador died Saturday after a heavy crucifix detached from a church wall and struck him during an evening Mass that was being broadcast live on the internet.
The Archdiocese of Guayaquil confirmed Sunday that the Rev. Patricio Alfredo Sánchez Molinari, pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, died following the incident. Sánchez was addressing attendees both inside the sanctuary and online when the large wooden cross mounted above the altar fell forward without warning, ABC News reported.
Tragedy captured during broadcast
Video footage widely circulated across social media shows Sánchez leading the service Saturday night in Guayaquil, Ecuador’s largest city. Roughly 27 to 30 minutes into the Mass, the crucifix toppled from its position behind the altar and struck the priest directly on the head, according to reports from Gulf News and the New York Post.
Broadcast footage indicated that Sánchez did not appear to notice the fixture giving way before it fell, ABC News noted. In the video, alarmed parishioners could be heard screaming and calling for an ambulance as the broadcast continued uninterrupted, according to the New York Post.
Emergency medical personnel were dispatched to the church, but the priest died later that day, the New York Post reported. The archdiocese’s official statement did not clarify whether Sánchez died instantly at the scene or after being transported for medical care, Gulf News reported.
In its official announcement on social media, the Archdiocese of Guayaquil expressed mourning for the clergyman. “We announce that our beloved Fr. Patricio Alfredo Sánchez Molinari, CSsR., who served as parish priest of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in the Central Vicariate, has departed for the Father’s House to rejoice in His presence and glory,” the archdiocese wrote, as reported by Yahoo News.
Priest served Redemptorist community
Sánchez was a member of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, a global Roman Catholic order founded in 1732 by St. Alphonsus Liguori in Italy, according to reporting by Yahoo News and ABC News. Commonly known as the Redemptorists, the religious order has roughly 4,500 members working in more than 80 nations, focusing primarily on ministering to poor and underserved communities, Yahoo News reported.
Prior to his assignment in downtown Guayaquil, Sánchez served in the town of Vinces, located in Ecuador’s Los Ríos province, according to reporting from local outlet Guayaquil News cited by Yahoo News. He regularly streamed worship services on his personal social media accounts and YouTube channel, Yahoo News reported.
Cause of collapse remains unclear
What caused the crucifix to pull free from the church wall remains unknown, news outlets reported. Church leadership has not released details regarding whether mounting hardware failed or if structural deterioration affected the wall above the altar, according to Yahoo News and Gulf News.
Municipal and law enforcement authorities in Guayaquil had not issued public statements or findings regarding the incident as of Sunday, ABC News reported. Newsweek reported that it reached out to the Archdiocese of Guayaquil for further comment outside normal business hours.
