WELD COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4)– The man found on top of a burning oil tank in Weld County earlier this week died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The man’s body was found at an oil tank battery.

The Weld County Coroner determined that the burns suffered happened after the man had died. The firearm was recovered at the scene.

A total of 40 firefighters responded to the fire at a Great Western tank battery at County Road 66 and Hillcrest Drive at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. Two of the 10 tanks in the battery had caught fire.

The site had not been operating since the fire. Repairs had been made and operations will resume once the investigation is complete.

The man’s identity has not been released to the public. He was an employee in the Longmont field office for two-and-a-half years.

Windsor Severance Fire Rescue Chief Kris Kazian released this statement about the investigation, “fire cannot be determined as intentional or accidental at this time.”

Great Western released this statement, Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of our lost team member and the countless people whose lives he touched. We are deeply saddened by his loss. As we grieve, we are focused on helping his family and our team cope with this tragedy. We are grateful for the first responders whose prompt and professional actions maintained the safety and security of our community and our operations. We will continue to fully cooperate with our local officials, industry representatives and safety personnel to complete a thorough incident investigation.

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