Worker killed in Boise hangar collapse was supporting his family in Guatemala, his uncle says

The uncle of one of three men killed in a building collapse in Boise, Idaho, says his nephew was working so his family in Guatemala could have a car and a roof over their heads.

Oscar Tzy said that mourning his nephew, Mario Sontay, 32, has been the "toughest part" of losing him in the Jan. 31 collapse of a hanger that was being built to house private jets at the Boise Airport.

“I used to talk to him often," Tzy, 43, said in Spanish through an interpreter, speaking by phone from Guatemala. "Long calls on the weekend. We can’t believe he’s gone.”

Also killed were Mariano Coc Och, 24, a Guatemala native, and Craig Durrant, 59, a co-founder of Big D Builders, which was overseeing the project. Nine people were injured.

The cause of the collapse is under investigation by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which could not be reached for comment Monday.

Tzy said Sontay never complained to family members about safety conditions at the job site. He also never mentioned how he felt about building a hangar for wealthy, private-jet passengers when he struggled to get by most of his life.

Instead, he focused on his job, Tzy said.

Sontay, an experienced iron worker, left San Pedro Carcha, Guatemala, four years ago with the hope of providing a better life for his wife, their daughter and his parents.

“Mario was very versed in the steel industry, in all components of assembling,” Tzy said, adding that his nephew was so talented, Sontay figured he could land decent-paying jobs in the U.S.

Tzy did not say whether Sontay entered the U.S. with appropriate legal documents.

Almost half the people in Guatemala live in poverty, according to Brookings Institution, a public policy think tank in Washington.

For the first few years, Sontay’s plan worked, his uncle said. As his family’s main financial provider, Sontay bought a house in San Pedro Carcha for his wife and daughter, a car for his parents and sent money to his loved ones in his home country every week.

It abruptly ended on Jan. 31.

Since Sontay's death, his family has struggled to make ends meet, and his father is suffering from several health ailments, Tzy said.

“They’re all scrambling to cover for each other and raise money," he said. "They’re trying to find a way to live.”

Tzy said Sontay's ultimate goal was to save enough money to move back to Guatemala, where he would teach a new generation how to construct buildings from the ground up.

“Mario wanted to spread his knowledge and teach iron workers how to build churches,” Tzy said.

Caleb Durrant, 30, the son of Craig Durrant, said recently that he spoke to his father just hours before he died. They exchanged greetings and chatted about construction, the industry they both worked in.

“He was a leader, who liked learning about different things,” Caleb Durrant said. “I miss him being here.”

Och's family in Guatemala could not be reached.