Nov. 1 (UPI) — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency Wednesday after a building collapsed at a coal preparation plant killed one worker and left one trapped under rubble.
“Two workers are trapped inside and a number of teams are working to rescue these individuals,” Beshear posted on X Wednesday.
According to Beshear, “the order mobilizes state resources to help Kentucky.”
Beshear asked the public to pray for the trapped workers and rescuers.
“Kentucky, please join Britainy and me in praying for their safety and for the brave teams working to rescue them,” Beshear posted on X Wednesday.
Later in the day Beshear announced that one of the workers had died.
“Kentucky, we have some tough news out of Martin County to share. At least one of the workers trapped inside the coal preparation plant has died. Please pray for the family and loved ones of this individual,” Beshear posted on X.
Law enforcement was reportedly called at about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday and discovered the collapsed building when they arrived at the scene.
CBS affiliate WYMT reported that workers were preparing the 10-story structure for demolition when the building collapsed.
“It’s my understanding that the coal company sold it for basically scrap. And they were salvaging what they could out of it,” Martin County Sheriff John Kirk told WYMT.
Kirk said he believes a section of building that was cut off by the workers did not fall off the structure properly.
“We believe that’s what happened. That it just didn’t fall the way they had projected it to fall and it actually closed around them,” Kirk told WYMT.
According to Kirk, rescuers have located one of the two trapped workers and are communicating with him while trying to remove him from the rubble.
