Nobody thought trapped in gas plant rubble

The deputy fire marshal of the town where a power plant explosion killed five people says no one is believed buried in the rubble.

The comments by Deputy Fire Marshal Al Santostefano on Monday mean the death toll will likely stand at five from the gas explosion the day before.

Mayor Sebastian Giuliano says in a statement that everyone assigned to work at the Kleen Energy plant is accounted for. He says there have been no recovery efforts there today because the site is too unsafe.

Sunday morning's blast at the Kleen Energy Systems plant in Middletown, about 30km south of Hartford, killed at least five people and injured a dozen or more others. It happened as workers were clearing gas lines of air, but the exact cause remained under investigation.

"I lost a couple of good friends up there," Michael Rosario, a business representative with the local Plumbers and Pipefitters union, said as he broke down crying. "I'm just so sorry something like this happened. They're all great people. We're all brothers and sisters."

He added, "There's still a lot of unanswered questions."

Investigators returned to the scene today to try to begin determining the cause.