After the preliminary autopsy report revealed that the young Puerto Rican volleyball player, Pilar Victoriá, died of natural causes in Turkey, many people began to wonder what that term actually means.
Pilar Victoria, 28, was found dead last Thursday in her apartment in Turkey, where she was staying. The athlete was in the country to play as a reinforcement for a team. Her team became concerned when she missed a practice. They immediately went to her apartment in Ankara and found her unresponsive in bed.
People often assume “natural causes” only applies to elderly individuals, but the reality is that a natural death can occur for various reasons.
David Fowler, President of the National Association of Medical Examiners (NAME) in the U.S., explained to USA Today that “death by natural causes” refers to “all deaths that are not caused by any type of injury or foreign substance.”
He clarified that there are five categories of death: homicide, accident, suicide, undetermined, and natural causes.
Fowler explained that “natural causes” is a broad term and can include a wide range of specific illnesses that can lead to death, such as cancer or heart problems.
For example, if someone dies of a heart attack while playing a sport, it is considered a natural death because it was a consequence of the activity. On the other hand, if someone dies from hypothermia while shoveling snow, that might be considered an accidental death because it wouldn’t have happened otherwise.
The website “Medicine & Public Health” explains that while the term can be vague, “death by natural causes” refers to those that occur without the influence of external factors, such as organ failure or diseases that worsen a person’s health, like cancer, heart disease, or diabetes. When external factors are involved, it is no longer considered a natural death.
Pilar had been a standout volleyball player from a young age, playing with the Criollas de Caguas club. In 2019, she joined the Criollas in the LVSF and was one of the key players in winning that season’s championship.
She was also a graduate of the volleyball programs at Texas and Arkansas in the NCAA and played in leagues in France and Italy.
