An investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that a Georgetown, Texas, construction company gave two workers installing sewer lines in an underground trench little chance of surviving.
A significant portion of the underground trench, that was more than two stories deep, collapsed during the excavation, crushing the workers under tons of soil and rocks, according to a Dec. 22 U.S. Department of Labor news release.
"WBW Construction LLC willfully sent these workers into an unprotected trench and ignored federal safety requirements," OSHA Area Director in Austin Casey Perkins said in the release. "Now, two workers' families, friends and co-workers are left to grieve their tragic, and avoidable, deaths.
“Incidents like this can be prevented by following proven and well-known methods to protect workers from the deadly hazards in trenching and excavation work,” Perkins added, according to the release.
OSHA has seen a sudden increase in the number of workers dying in trench and excavation collapses, he said in the release. The administration has a National Emphasis Program in place to hold violators accountable and to alert employers and workers of the dangers. OSHA encourages anyone who sees workers in an unsafe trench to report the hazards to help save lives.
