Updated on the next page: Police say that, so far, the deaths appear to be natural — and coincidental. First posted at 1:10 p.m.

Two men who appeared to be in their 40s were found dead in Venice today, police said.

The bodies were found in two separate units of the same apartment building, LAPD Sgt. Brian Gura told us. There is no initial evidence of foul play, but homicide detectives were sent to the scene, he said.

The discovery was reported …

… shortly before 11 a.m. in a building at 15 Horizon Avenue, just steps from the boardwalk officially known as Ocean Front Walk, the sergeant said.

Cops were looking into the possibility that one of the men was at least partially submerged in a bathtub, Gura said.

A coroner's official said its own investigators were sent to the scene, too.

Gura said that police can't touch the bodies and have to wait for coroner's investigators. However, it appeared — for now — that there was no obvious trauma such as gunshots or stab wounds, he said.

And no one called 911 to report gunfire, Gura said.

The initial report to police was that there was “something wrong” inside the apartment building, he said.

[Update at 5:30 p.m.]: LAPD Lt. John Radtke told us that detectives believe, at least initially, that the deaths were the result of natural causes. Ultimately, it appears, the coroner's office will have to weigh in on that. “They do not appear to be homicides at this point,” he said.

The building serves as an alcohol and drug recovery house of sorts, he said, and much of the staff had been out for the holidays, possibly leading to the discovery of both bodies on the same day, the lieutenant said:

The peculiar circumstances are in part due to the fact that a lot of staff working in that building were off for holidays and made the discoveries upon returning to work.

Still, because of the possibility of overdoses or even foul play, detectives were “taking a hard look at it,” Radtke said.

“It is unusual.”

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