The Latest: 5 presumed dead in Oklahoma gas rig explosion

QUINTON, Okla. – The Latest on a fiery explosion at an Oklahoma gas drilling rig (all times local):

10:25 a.m.

Officials say the five employees who have been missing since an explosion at an Oklahoma gas drilling rig are presumed dead.

Pittsburg County Sheriff Chris Morris said Tuesday that the search for the workers has turned to a recovery mission after the Monday morning blast in eastern Oklahoma.

Three of the workers were employed by Houston-based Patterson-UTI Energy Inc. Company president and CEO Andy Hendricks pledged a full investigation into the explosion.

Emergency management officials said Monday night that the fire was extinguished. Authorities say 16 people who were on the site at the time of the blast escaped without major injuries. One person was airlifted to a hospital for treatment.

___

7:20 a.m.

The search is resuming for five people who are unaccounted for after a fiery explosion at an Oklahoma gas drilling rig.

The blast happened Monday morning at a drilling site near Quinton, about 100 miles (161 kilometres) southeast of Tulsa. The explosion sent plumes of black smoke into the air and left a derrick crumpled on the ground. For much of the day Monday, emergency officials were unable to get near the rig because the fire was still burning.

Emergency management officials said Monday night that the fire was extinguished. Authorities say 16 people who were on the site at the time of the blast escaped without major injuries. One person was airlifted to a hospital, and five others remain missing.

The cause of the blast is not yet known.