The Weld County community is mourning after a tragic incident at a local dairy farm claimed the lives of six individuals, including a high school student and his father. The Weld County Coroner's Office confirmed the six deaths occurred during a "dairy accident" at Prospect Valley Dairy in Keenesburg, with the victims' ages ranging from 17 to 50 years old.
Among the deceased are 17-year-old Oscar Espinoza Leos and his father, Alejandro Espinoza Cruz, as well as a second son, Carlos Espinoza Prado, and their relative by marriage, Jorge Sanchez Pena, according to WKYT. Oscar was reportedly helping out his father before returning to school, and the loss has been deeply felt by the Highland High School community, with the Weld Re-9 School District providing counseling and support to their students and staff and expressing their condolences in a statement obtained by Denver7.
Ricardo Gomez Galvan and Noe Montanez Casanas are the other two victims of the tragedy, both from Keenesburg. Autopsies have been completed on the deceased, but the final cause and manner of death are pending further testing, including toxicology results, to determine if gas exposure in a confined space was the cause, as hinted by initial findings from the scene detailed by first responders about the presence of unknown gases and hydrogen sulfide—a highly toxic substance, KDVR reported.
