DALLAS – An employee of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in downtown Dallas committed suicide inside the museum Tuesday morning, a police official told WFAA.
The employee, a 60-year-old man, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and police found him dead inside his locked office at the museum, according to a police statement.
The museum did not open Tuesday as a result of the incident.
"An employee of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science passed away this morning in a non-public area of the Museum," a museum spokesperson said in a statement. "The individual died before the Museum had opened to the public; no others were injured. Out of respect for the individual and the family members, the Museum is closed today.
"The Perot Museum deeply values our employees and the contributions they make. Our heartfelt condolences go to the family of this individual."
It wasn’t immediately known whether the employee had a firearm as part of his or her on-the-job responsibility. The Perot Museum is a weapon-free facility, according to its website.
The museum, in a statement later Tuesday, said it would "reexamine and address its safety procedures" in light of the incident.
“As an educational institution with numerous school and educational groups and activities on Museum property, weapons are prohibited from the property pursuant to Section 46.03 of the Texas Penal Code,” their online policy reads.
There are no metal detectors at the museum.
People with tickets to the museum for Tuesday can keep the tickets and use them for admittance any time in the next 60 days, the museum said on its website. Those wanting to reschedule or request a refund are asked to email info@perotmuseum.org.
The National Suicide Prevention Hotline can be reached at 800-723-TALK (8255).