SIX workers, including four members of the same family, have now been identified after dying in what authorities suspect was gas exposure at a Colorado dairy farm, leaving communities in mourning.
Emergency crews recovered the bodies on Wednesday evening at a dairy farm in Keenesburg, about 35 miles northeast of Denver.
Weld County Chief Deputy Coroner Jolene Weiner confirmed all six were Hispanic males, four of them belonging to an extended family.
Alejandro Espinoza Cruz, 50, of Nunn, was among the victims. His two sons, 17-year-old Oscar Espinoza Leos and 29-year-old Carlos Espinoza Prado, also died.
Another family member, 36-year-old Jorge Sanchez Pena of Greeley, perished in the incident. He was related to the Espinozas by marriage.
The remaining two victims were Ricardo Gomez Galvan, 40, and Noe Montanez Casanas, 32, both residents of Keenesburg.
Project Protect Food System Workers said the Espinozas and Pena often repaired machinery at dairies around Keenesburg, the Denver Post reported.
“They were extremely hardworking and humble,” said Tomi Rodriguez, an outreach worker with the organization.
“They were a very united family.”
The coroner’s office said autopsies have been completed but further testing is needed to confirm the exact cause of death.
Project Protect said the two victims outside the extended family lived in employer-provided housing on the dairy grounds.
The farm remains under investigation while authorities await toxicology results.
Melissa Chesmore, a spokesperson for the Weld County Sheriff’s Office, said there is no evidence suggesting criminal activity.
County records list the property as owned by Prospect Valley Dairy LLC, with an address in Bakersfield, California.
Community members described the victims as dedicated workers who were tightly connected to their families.
Colorado Dairy Farm Tragedy
- Victims: Six workers, all Hispanic men
- Family members lost: A father, two sons, and a relative
- Other victims: Two men who lived on the farm
- Location: Keenesburg, Colorado, about 35 miles from Denver
- Cause: Suspected gas exposure in a confined space (under investigation)
- Owner: Prospect Valley Dairy LLC, based in Bakersfield, California
The loss has left a ripple of grief through rural areas around Keenesburg.
Support networks and neighbors continue to organize events to aid the families financially.
According to the ABC local affiliate KMGH-TV report, the tragedy may have started when a worker went into a manure pit to adjust a valve.
The worker may have accidentally triggered a valve or pump with his phone, releasing hydrogen sulfide gas.
The worker collapsed almost instantly, and five others rushed in to save him, despite warnings from a supervisor not to enter.
A former employee at the location said the victims were his friends.
“They started working here about six years ago,” the man, who identified himself to the outlet as Inés, said of the victims.
“They couldn’t tell me what happened, but something happened.”
“That’s why I came because they were my friends.”
Weld County is Colorado’s leading dairy producer and also tops the state in beef cattle, grain, and sugar beet production, with about three-quarters of its land devoted to farming and livestock.
Census data from 2020 shows that 30% of the county’s residents identified as Hispanic or Latino, compared with 22% statewide.
