UPDATE: Two workers found dead after being trapped under coal pile at Comanche Generating Station in Pueblo
PUEBLO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- (UPDATE) A spokesman for a subcontractor that employed two men killed Thursday in a coal pile at an Xcel Energy power plant in Pueblo updated the situation Friday.
Jeff Hymas, communications director for Savage Services, said that his company is working with local and federal authorities and Xcel to investigate the cause of the incident.
KRDO NewsChannel 13 tried to contact the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the federal regulatory agency that investigates workplace accidents, but had not received a response as of noon Friday.
The names of the two victims -- described by authorities as men in their 20s and 30s -- have yet to be released as the Pueblo County Coroner's Office investigates the official cause of their deaths.
"We've been meeting with our team this morning to make sure they have the support they need and can continue to focus on working safely," Hymas said. "We are also providing counseling services and other resourcesto help the (victims') families and our team members here. As you would expect, it's been very difficult for everyone."
PREVIOUS STORY -- THURSDAY, JUNE 2
Authorities confirmed late Thursday afternoon that they found the bodies of two workers trapped underneath a pile of coal for several hours at Xcel Energy's Comanche Generating Station in south Pueblo.
"We found two men -- one in his 20s and one in his 30s," said Pueblo Fire Inspector Erik Duran. "We reached the first victim at around 3 p.m. and found the second victim shortly thereafter."
Duran said that the bodies were recovered and taken from the scene by at 4:30 p.m.
He also said that the victims worked for Savage, a subcontractor for Xcel Energy, and were seen walking up an 80-foot-high coal pile just after 8:30 a.m.
"There was an eyewitness who saw them there and then saw them disappear," Duran said. "We don't know why they were there or what their jobs were."
A technical rescue team from the Pueblo Fire Department was dispatched to the scene to begin the rescue; additionally, two ambulances from American Medical Response and two emergency flight helicopters were on stand-by.
Duran said that the workers were at risk of being crushed or suffocated by the coal pile -- which made the rescue and recovery effort dangerous.
"The type of terrain that we were working on is anything from a lump of coal to fine silt -- coal dust -- very unstable under the footing," he explained. "So every time there is excavation of some of that, more of the pile fills in."
Still, Duran said that rescuers had high hopes for a happier outcome, because victims of similar situations had survived for several days before found alive.
A representative from Savage, the subcontractor that employed the two victims, provided KRDO with the following statement at 1:20 p.m. Thursday:
On Thursday, June 2, 2022 at approximately 8:20 a.m., an incident occurred at the coal handling operation managed by Savage at Xcel Energy’s Comanche power plant in Pueblo, Colorado, resulting in two Savage Team Members being trapped in a coal pile. Our team immediately activated rescue efforts, and work to reach and recover our Team Members continues at this time. We appreciate the rapid response of the local emergency agencies and Xcel Energy’s assistance. We will provide more information later today when it becomes available.
Jeff Hymas
Communications Director at Savage
Hymas was expected to hold a news conference Thursday evening to provide more details.
Around 60 people were involved in the effort to find the two men.
"Everyone who responded has heavy hearts after responding and taking part in a rescue operation like this," Duran said. "We never like to come away with this outcome."
He added that the Pueblo County Coroner's Office confirmed the deaths, and will ultimately determine the official causes.
The victims' families have been notified, Duran said.
