(THIS STORY WRITTEN BY MISSOURINET CONTRIBUTOR JILL ENDERS IN ST. LOUIS)

ST. LOUIS- Two utility workers are dead, after being shot to death late Thursday morning while working in a residential neighborhood.

The incident happened in the Hamilton Heights neighborhood in north St. Louis, when a gunman opened fire on two Laclede Gas Company employees.

St. Louis Police say the two employees were conducting utility work in the 5900 block of Minerva. Both employees were killed in the gunfire.

The suspect is also dead after turning the gun on himself, according to police.

In a written statement, Laclede Gas says the company is “shocked and grieving” and is working with police.

The “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” reports Laclede Gas and other utilities pulled employees from some St. Louis work sites Thursday as a precaution. The other utilities include Ameren Missouri, the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District and Missouri American Water, according to the newspaper.