The pit was part of a pig farm owned by Toño Pérez Arana and his brothers, in the El Salobrar area of Pitillas, Navarra. It stored liquid livestock waste, including manure and urine. On 4 November 2026, César Ruiz-Díaz Meza, 33, was working inside it when he lost consciousness.
According to accounts gathered by the Polícia Foral during its investigation, Javier Pérez Valencia, 37, entered the pit first to help him. He also passed out. Toño Pérez Arana, 61, then went in to assist them and collapsed as well. All three died from asphyxia in the oxygen-deficient atmosphere, where toxic gases were also reported. Emergency accounts placed the incident at about 12:15-12:16 p.m.
The accounts describe a rapid sequence in which each man entered the pit after the previous person had collapsed. The Polícia Foral’s Accident Investigation Brigade is investigating how the men entered the pit and what happened inside. Slurry pits are confined storage spaces for livestock waste, and emergency responders confirmed the deaths of all three men at the farm.
The CD Azkarrena in Caparroso mourned the deaths of former players Toño Pérez Arana and Javier Pérez Valencia in a social media post. The club said they would remain part of its history and offered condolences to those close to them, including relatives and friends.
A separate fatality near Portals Vells was also under investigation by the Civil Guard, with an autopsy planned to establish the cause.
