Would this be a HIPPA violation????

Last week a co-worker of mine was killed in a car accident. Our employer was promptly notified. However they didn't tell any of us that the accident even happened. So we didn't know that our friend had died until we started hearing a bunch of rumors. They said it would have violated the HIPPA law so they couldn't tell us ..I don't think it would have just wondering if anyone knows? I think this was very inconciderate of our employer>