Last week was a busy one for safety investigators, with two workers dying in a trench collapse in Maryland, two workers trapped and rescued in Michigan, and a construction company in Tennessee fined after a worker died last summer in a cave-in.
2 Saved in Michigan
It’s rare that people in trench collapses survive, as dirt suddenly rushes down, with just 1 square yard weighing as much as 3,000 pounds.
Not only are victims unable to breathe, but they also face compression injuries that can turn deadly, even after they are removed from the trench. When rescuers arrive, they, too, face dangers of secondary collapse and must spend time shoring the trench to ensure their safety before entering.
On February 25, two workers beat the odds after being rescued in Wyandotte, Michigan, after they were trapped in a 15- to 20-foot-deep excavation. The workers for A&D Plumbing were installing a sewer line.
One of the trapped workers was trying to uncover the other worker when emergency responders arrived.
Wyandotte Fire Chief Jeremy Moline said during a press conference February 26 that the men were in the trench for about 4 hours before rescue. Because of snow melt, the mud was wet, heavy and sloppy.
“We don’t like to send our rescuers into those environments,” Moline said. “There’s the potential for collapse. … So we had to wait until we had the shoring in place from the urban search and rescue teams before we put our responders in there.”
After both workers were removed from the trench, one was treated on the scene and released. The other was flown to a hospital where he was in stable condition, according to Moline. A relative told News Channel 3 that he was released after treatment.
“We’re very fortunate,” Moline said. “These incidents tend to go bad, and we’re very fortunate that we were able to get them out.”
Michigan OSHA is investigating.
Michigan OSHA is also investigating a fatal trench collapse February 12 at Jellystone Campground in Sanilac County, in which a 34-year-old senior foreman pipefitter died. The trench was reportedly 8 feet deep and was dug for a sewer installation project. It took nearly 8 hours to recover the body, as the trench was too unstable for rescuers to enter.
2 Die in Maryland
Emergency responders at the scene of a deadly trench collapse February 28 in Maryland.Baltimore County Fire Department
Emerson Amestica, 24, and Wilmer Barzallo, 32, were in a trench February 28 reinforcing a concrete retaining wall when the wall collapsed and trapped them in the trench, according to news reports.
The Baltimore County Fire Department, along with other nearby fire and rescue crews, worked about 8 hours to remove the workers from the 6-foot-deep trench beside a house being renovated. The men were pronounced dead on the scene.
Maryland Occupational Safety & Health is investigating.
Tennessee Contractor Fined after Trench Death
Emergency workers respond to a fatal trench collapse August 22 in Cleveland, Tennessee.Chattanooga Fire Department
The man was in a 9-foot-deep trench when the cave-in occurred at 1:15 p.m. in Cleveland, Tennessee, and he became trapped. Co-workers had tried to rescue him but were unable.
Emergency responders recovered his body hours later.
“Significant portions of his body were buried by soil in the collapse,” said the Chattanooga Fire Department at the time. “These kinds of responses are laborious for first responders as the trench needs to be stabilized and then debris removed in order to safely extricate the victim.”
It was announced February 26 that Tennessee Occupational Safety & Health Administration issued four citations against the worker’s employer, Dillard Construction of Chattanooga:
- No cave-in protection, such as a trench box.
- No safe way to exit the trench.
- No daily inspection of the trench before workers entered.
- No training of workers to recognize trench hazards.
Dillard released the following statement to WDEF New 12 in August after the collapse:
“We are completely devastated by what occurred yesterday to one of our employees. We are fully committed to cooperating with the agencies that are investigating this tragedy. Our deepest thoughts and heartfelt prayers are with his family, friends and coworkers during this incredibly difficult time.”
