U.S. Steel says preparations for a routine maintenance task may have led to an explosion at a U.S. Steel coal-processing plant near Pittsburgh that left two dead, sent 10 to hospitals and damaged part of the sprawling facility.

Two people are dead and 10 others injured after an explosion at U.S. Steel’s Clairton Coke Works near Pittsburgh. The recovery operation has ended, and the cause is under investigation.

The explosion, followed by several smaller blasts, could be felt in the nearby community and prompted county officials to warn residents to stay away from the scene so emergency workers could respond.

Workers were heating coal and preparing for routine maintenance when an explosion rocked a U.S. Steel plant outside Pittsburgh

The deadly explosion at Clairton Coke Works near Pittsburgh occurred when a gas valve was flushed before planned maintenance, U.S. Steel said in preliminary findings.

Family members tell Pittsburgh's Action News 4 Steven Menefee, a father of two, was a loving man who would give you the shirt off his back.

Allegheny County is increasing air quality monitoring after an explosion at a U.S. Steel plant south of Pittsburgh killed two people and injured more than 10 others.

If you grew up in Pittsburgh or in one of the nearby steel towns, the deadly explosion at U.S. Steel’s Clairton Coke Works last week — killing two workers and hospitalizing 10 — struck home. There are fewer mills now,