The Department of Labor and Industries said Thursday that it is investigating the deaths of two men who perished Wednesday when the boom truck they were operating apparently made contact with a live power line in south Auburn.

The men worked for the propane distribution company Ferrellgas, located at 3611 A St. S., in Auburn. Ferrellgas corporate spokesman Scott Brockelmeyer identified the men Thursday as Mark Olson, 40 of Auburn, and Scott Pigg, 25 of University Place. Olson had worked for the company since January 2006 and Pigg since July 2007.

“We’re devastated,” said Brockelmeyer. “It’s about as sobering a situation as you can imagine.”

According to Auburn police, Olson and Pigg were moving propane tanks for Ferrellgas at about 5:08 p.m. when their boom touched nearby power lines, igniting a fire in the truck and injuring the men operating the boom. The men, who sustained injuries consistent with electrical and fire burns, were pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

Several nearby tanks were charred during the fire, but firefighters from the Valley Regional Fire Authority quickly arrived on the scene, soaking a series of large propane tanks with water. Crews blocked off A Street for several blocks north and south of the location. No one else was injured.

L&I inspectors arrived at the propane store within a few hours of the incident and began their investigation.

“We’re at the start of the investigation, so there’s not a lot of information we have at this point,” said Hector Castro, a spokesman for L&I. “It could be some time before we complete our investigation. We have up to six months.”

L&I, which investigates all work-related fatalities to determine the causes leading up to the incidents, said in a press release that these are the 35th and 36th workplace deaths in Washington state this year. Between 1998 and 2010, 22 workers came too close to power lines and were electrocuted.

A spokesman for Puget Sound Energy said the power line belonged to Burlington Northern Railroad. A BNSF spokesman declined to confirm that information or to say how much power was actually flowing through the lines at the time.

“Just say BNSF is looking into this claim further,” said BNSF spokesman Gus Melonas