Colorado - 6 dead in accident at Colorado dairy farm: Fire chief, OSHA investigating - August 21, 2025

[sharon sanders]

hat tip Michael Coston


6 dead in accident at Colorado dairy farm: Fire chief


The Occupational Safety and Health Administration said it is investigating.

ByMeredith Deliso
August 21, 2025, 4:55 PM​


Six people died in an accident at a dairy farm in Colorado, authorities said.

Fire crews were dispatched to a dairy farm in Weld County on Wednesday evening for a "confined space rescue," Southeast Weld Fire District Chief Tom Beach said in a statement.
​
more... https://abcnews.go.com/US/colorado-dairy-farm-fatalities/story?id=124860031

 

[Commonground]

https://www.facebook.com/SEWeldFire/posts/pfbid0bputnCJzar6gbh4FhXLx7TpxuPwKLV3gN5dVRMzzNv9hSQjXL5NpEe7qJnNxc3aQl

Southeast Weld Fire Protection District
16h ·
Press Release​
​

 

[Pathfinder]

6 people are found dead at a Colorado dairy. Authorities suspect an accident involving gas exposure

By MORGAN LEE and AUDREY McAVOY
Updated 10:27 PM CDT, August 21, 2025

An apparent accident at a dairy in a rural farming community in Colorado involving exposure to gas killed six people, including a high school student, authorities said Thursday.

Investigators are looking into what kind of gases may have played a role in the deaths Wednesday at Prospect Valley Dairy in Keenesburg, about 35 miles (55 kilometers) northeast of Denver. Crews recovered the bodies in a confined space at the dairy, the Southeast Weld Fire Protection District said.

“We are investigating these deaths as the possible consequence of gas exposure in a confined space,” said Jolene Weiner, chief deputy coroner for Weld County.

The identities of those who died, all Hispanic males, were being withheld pending notification of the families, Weiner said. A local school district said a high school student was among those who died.

Weld County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Melissa Chesmore said her agency didn’t find anything indicating a crime took place.
...

https://apnews.com/article/colorado-dairy-deaths-8ee96fdcb698f4d5de1a231a5389d22a

 

[Pathfinder]

Dairy worker may have accidentally released toxic gas before 5 others tried to save him, sources say

Denver7 spoke to two sources in the dairy industry who confirmed details about the accidental deaths

Posted 22 minutes ago and last updated 8 minutes ago
By: Óscar Contreras
...
In this case, the sources said, a contractor was at Prospect Valley Dairy conducting work on an underground manure pit. The workers had been in the pit several times throughout the day on Wednesday. At the end of the day, one of the workers went back down into the pit to do some additional work and possibly, "adjust a valve."

The sources told Denver7 they suspect the worker then accidentally turned on a valve or pump with his phone, which caused a release of hydrogen sulfide. The toxic gas, which can lead to immediate death in high concentrations, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), is formed as a result of decomposing animal manure.

Both sources told Denver7 the worker inside the pit then immediately collapsed due to exposure (it only takes a matter of seconds for hydrogen sulfide to cut off oxygen to the brain, the sources said), before five other workers rushed in to save him – despite an on-site supervisor yelling at them not to go in.
...
https://www.denver7.com/news/front-...before-5-others-tried-to-save-him-sources-say