T. Boone Pickens
The 21-year-old grandson of Texas oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens died on Tuesday after being rushed to a local hospital. Reuters

Thomas Boone Pickens IV, the 21-year-old grandson of Texas oil tycoon and American business magnate T.Boone Pickens, died on Tuesday after being rushed to an area hospital, a family spokesman told ABC News.

"Ty's loss at such a young age is an unspeakable family tragedy for the entire Pickens family and his many friends," Jay Rosser, vice president of public affairs for BP Capital, told the news outlet in a statement. "We mourn his passing and respectfully request that the family be allowed to grieve in private in this time of sorrow."

Police in Fort Worth, Texas, responded to a call of a deceased person a few miles from the campus of Texas Christian University, where Pickens IV was a junior, at mid-morning on Tuesday, ABC-affiliate WFAA said.

Pickens was eventually rushed to the hospital by a friend, neighbors at the apartment complex where police arrived told WFAA.

While authorities said a determination of the cause of death could take two to four weeks, Linda Anderson, a spokeswoman for the Tarrant County medical examiner, told the Associated Press that an autopsy was planned for Wednesday.

Texas Christian University released a statement acknowledging Pickens' death.

"We are deeply saddened by the loss of this member of our community, and our hearts and thoughts are with Ty's family at this time," TCU Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Kathy Cavins-Tull said.

T. Boone Pickens founded Mesa Petroleum in 1956 and has since assumed the helm of hedge fund BP Capital Management. After having accumulating a $1.4 billion fortune, T. Boone Pickens is listed as the 360th richest person in America by Forbes magazine.