In a 35-page response filed Oct. 5 in Weld County District Court, the dairy and Bos also say the owner followed instructions from workers as they restarted equipment after a pipe repair. They contend the dairy’s safety measures were adequate and that ratchet straps used to brace piping were an acceptable repair method. The defendants asked the court to dismiss the case and require the plaintiffs to pay their attorney fees. No trial date has been set.

The deaths occurred Aug. 20, 2025, after a pipe failed in a manure-management pump room. One by one, six men entered the room in an effort to rescue a colleague who had fallen. The lawsuit identifies the hazard as hydrogen sulfide, a toxic gas.

The men who died were Carlos Espinoza Prado, 29, of Evans; Noe Montanez Casanas, 32, of Keenesburg; Jorge Sanchez Peña, 36, of Greeley; Ricardo Gomez Galvan, 40, of Keenesburg; Alejandro Espinoza Cruz, 50, of Nunn; and Oscar Espinoza Leos, 17, of Nunn. All were Hispanic, and some were related by blood or marriage.

The civil lawsuit, filed in August on behalf of surviving family members, alleges that the dairy and Bos failed to prevent a foreseeable danger. It says the pump room lacked protections including warning signs, gas monitoring and alarms, ventilation, confined-space entry procedures, training, rescue equipment and a rescue plan.

The defendants acknowledge in their filing that there were no hydrogen sulfide warning signs at or near the room’s entrance. They say workers received verbal warnings and allege that each person who entered had been told not to do so.

The parties also disagree about how the pump system was restarted. The lawsuit says Bos remotely turned the system back on using a phone app, setting off the events that led to the gas release. The defendants’ account says Sanchez Peña told Bos to open a flush valve, then said he would activate the pump; Bos says he opened another valve after receiving further instructions.

The filing also disputes the families’ allegations about the pipe supports. An inspection arranged by the families’ attorney last November documented piping braced with ratchet straps, the lawsuit says. The defendants acknowledge the straps were used but argue they can serve purposes beyond securing cargo, including holding structures in place while adhesives dry.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued about $250,000 in fines against the dairy and other entities in February. The families’ attorney said the fines had not been paid because the entities were appealing them.

The families’ lawsuit says they believe those responsible knew of the danger and failed to act to prevent it. The dairy and Bos dispute that account in their court response.