Three brothers from Ohio have died after getting stuck in a manure pit on their farm.
The brothers, Gary Wuebker, 37, Brad Wuebker, 35 and Todd Wuebker, 31, died Tuesday after they attempted to fix a manure pump, St. Henry Fire Chief Matt Lefeld told The Associated Press. However, the Wuebker brothers were unable to escape the pit of manure, and died after they passed out from the manure fumes, Lefeld added.
The Wuebker brothers worked alongside their father at their farm, GBT Wuebker Farms, and were also members of the Coldwater Young Farmers and the St. Aloysius Catholic Church, Fox News reported. A Mass service will be held to remember the Wuebker brothers Monday, the N. J. Hogekamp Sons, Inc. funeral home in St. Henry, Ohio, told Fox News.
Manure pits are used to store waste before eventually used as fertilizer on fields, and are common on large livestock farms. However, the pits can produce harmful gasses, such as hydrogen sulfide, methane, carbon monoxide and ammonia, which can cause headaches, dizziness, breathing trouble and deaths, according to the AP.
Other farmers and members of the community extended their condolences to the Wuebker family on social media.
The Ohio Holstein Association wrote that their “condolences go out to the Wuebker family on the loss of their three sons, Brad, Todd, and Gary Wuebker of Mercer County,” in a Wednesday Facebook post. (RELATED: Man Loaded With Meth Found Alive Inside Farm Equipment, Removed After 2 Days)
“Our hearts are with the Wuebker Family,” Mercer Landmark, Inc., another local farm, wrote in a Facebook post. “Brad, Gary and Todd Wuebker lost their lives doing what they loved – working on the family farm. Brad and Gary were members of our team and had a work ethic like no other,” the post added.