Tejano singer Emilio Navaira is in critical condition in a Houston hospital after his tour bus crashed early Sunday morning.
According to this Houston Chronicle news story Tejano star Emilio Navaira hospitalized after bus crash: "Navaira was one of eight people injured in the crash, Houston TV stations KTRK and KHOU reported. Navaira was taken to Memorial Hermann Hospital, where hospital administrator Lisa Lagrone listed him in critical condition. The others were taken to Memorial Hermann and Ben Taub hospitals."
Early reports indicate Navaira was driving the bus, but Sunday afternoon Chronicle reporter Mike Glenn said that a police investigator later told him that could not be confirmed.
We've tried to reach Navaira's family members here in San Antonio, but as it turns out most of the family is in Houston at the hospital.
However, a close family friend said the 45-year-old Navaira sustained serious head injuries in the accident. He is in critical condition as doctors monitor the pressure in his brain. The family friend said the next 24 hours are the most critical.
The Grammy-winning Emilio and his group Rio, performed Saturday night at a Houston nightclub.
According to the Chronicle and other news reports, the tour bus was heading north along the west 610 Loop near the Southwest Freeway when it crashed into a set of freeway barrels shortly before 5 a.m.
Emilio's tour bus on Loop 610 in Houston. To his fans, Navaira is known simply as Emilio. Over a 20-year career that started as a lead singer for David Lee Garza y Los Musicales, Emilio became a red-hot artists in the mid '90s. He and Selena were considered the king and queen of Tejano, both having played the Houston Astrodome for the Houston Rodeo several times. They both won numerous times at the annual Tejano Music Awards.
In 1995, Emilio released "Life is Good," his first all-country CD, produced by Barry Beckett. The next year Emilio followed that with "On the House," again produced by Beckett. Both CDs produced hits such as "It's Not the End of the World" and "Somebody Stop Me."
Emilio also won a Grammy in 2003 for his CD "Acuerdate."
Emilio's latest CD is "De Nuevo" released last September
Our prayers go out to Emilio and his band memebers and his family in this crucial time. May you recover and live a long healthy life. God Bless our prayers are with you.
From all of us here at Canasta Records we would like to Wish Emilio a speedy recovery. It is awful to see this happen to a musican, we are all brothers in music and this terrible to see. God Bless his family and the rest of the band.
On behalf of Los D Boyz,And all the "De La Rosa" Family,we send all our love and prayer's to Emilio,his family,and his band member's.We Pray that the Lord touch him with his holy hand,and heal him so that he may recover from his injuries.We ask this in Jesus name!!GET WELL SOON EMILIO,OUR LOVE AND PRAYER'S ARE WITH YOU!! AS ALWAYS:RICK D./LOS"D"BOYZ
Dr. Alex Valadka, a neurosurgeon at Memorial Hermann Hospital, said today that the singer arrived at the hospital in a deep coma and a scan showed a large blood clot. They immediately operated.
"He's still critically ill". There is a chance he may not make it," said Dr. Valadka. "Everyone needs to understand that right up front. That's how bad it is. Any recovery will take a long time.
We're told the surgery went well and Navaira was transferred to intensive care. Doctors are using a procedure to cool the body over the next 48 hours to control trauma. They're also keeping him in a medically induced coma.
Meanwhile, while doctors say the pressure on his brain is under control, he still may not make it. And if he does, there's a very good chance he'll never perform or sing again.
We also confirmed what had been reported earlier, that Navaira was behind the wheel at the time of the accident.
As for the others on the bus and their injuries: Accordion player had glass in his back, will be released today Drummer had 50 stitches to the head, to be released today Bass guitarist was sent to Ben Taub with a stomach injury Brother Raul suffered cuts and bruises, but is fine
"He's like a brother," said Navaira's agent, Joe Casias. "Down to earth, this guy would give you the shirt off his back. Good people. Like a brother.
As for the tour bus, it was fit for the road. According to the group's manager, all safety inspections had been done. The band was supposed to play Friday in San Jose, California, one of roughly 150 concerts Navaira performs each year.
My Thoughts and Prayers are with Emilio, his band and Family.
"Doctors Tuesday began rewarming him, raising his temperature by a quarter-degree Centigrade each hour, a procedure that would take about 16 hours to return his temperature to normal.
"Overnight he was stable and there was nothing new. We're keeping him in a medically induced coma to try to help his brain recover. It's difficult to say how much he will recover. But we are measuring the pressures in his brain and the oxygen in his brain, and that's what's guiding our therapy," said Dr. Alex Valadka, director of neurotrauma services at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center and vice chair of neurosciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. "In his case, (nothing new) is good. We're still afraid something adverse can happen."
Even if Navaira pulls through, the effects on his health "can be as bad as not surviving," Valadka said, listing possible repercussions as persistent coma, a vegetative state, weakness or paralysis and difficulty speaking. He also said less dramatic but still severe fallout could be memory loss or ability to maintain concentration."
