Coal pile collapse kills two men at Colorado power plant

June 3 (UPI) -- Two men died after getting trapped under a pile of coal Thursday at Xcel Energy's Comanche Generating Station in Pueblo, Colo.

A technical rescue team from the Pueblo Fire Department responded to a 911 call at about 8:40 a.m. Thursday reporting multiple people were trapped within a coal pile following a "landslide."

"We found two men -- one in his 20s and one in his 30s," Pueblo Fire Inspector Erik Duran said, according to KRDO-TV. "We reached the first victim at around 3 p.m. and found the second victim shortly thereafter."

The men worked for Savage, a sub-contractor for Xcel Energy, according to Duran. He said the men were seen walking up an 80-foot-high coal pile and then they disappeared.

"We are devastated that the deaths of two of our Team Members have been confirmed, resulting from an incident that occurred Thursday morning at the coal yard Savage operates and maintains for Xcel Energy at its Comanche power plant," the Savage company said in a statement.

The Savage statement said the deaths are tragic for the families and the Pueblo community.

"We are working with local and federal officials and Xcel Energy to investigate the cause of the accident," the company's statement said.