Employer name: BZ Plumbing, Inc., a residential plumbing and sewage installation contractor based in Jerome, Idaho.
Inspection site: Residence in Twin Falls, Idaho
Citations issued: Four serious and one willful citation.
Investigation findings: A foreman and two laborers were exposed to cave-in hazards while working in a 7 to 10-foot trench September 24 with no shoring, sloping or engineering controls. The workers also had no ladder to exit the trench. OSHA is also citing the company for having a self-identified "competent person" at the work site who had not taken a competent person training in trenching and excavation hazards.
Every month, somewhere in the U.S., two people die in trench cave-ins - buried or crushed by the tremendous weight of falling earth. In fact, one cubic yard of soil can be equal to the weight of a small automobile, about 3,000 pounds. These needless deaths can be prevented with proper cave-in protections.
Proposed penalties: $24,000.
Quote: "A trench can easily become a grave without the proper precautions to prevent cave-ins or safe means of exit," said David Kearns, area director of OSHA's Boise office. "Employers are responsible for ensuring that effective safety measures are in place and in use before their workers enter a trench."
The citations can be viewed at: http://www.dol.gov/sites/default/files/documents/newsroom/releases/OSHA20160090fs.pdf *
