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Region 8 News Release: 42-OSHA
Thursday, December 3, 1998
Contact: Rich Kulczewski, (303) 844-1302

TARCO, Inc., Arvada, Colo., was cited today for two willful violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and issued proposed penalties totaling $126,000.

The violations and the penalties were issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Englewood area office following an inspection of an excavation site in Edgewater, Colo. on June 8, 1998. The inspection was initiated by a referral from the Edgewater Police and Fire Departments when a TARCO employee was partially buried by a cave-in.

John Healy, OSHA area director in Englewood, said the violations resulted because the employer failed to provide adequate sloping, shoring, shields, or equivalent systems to protect employees from cave-in hazards, further, the employer allowed accumulations of water in the excavation.

"This total disregard for employee safety is not acceptable and cannot be tolerated," said Healy. "The competent person on site knew of the cave-in hazard and failed to remove the employees from those potentially life threatening conditions."

Studies estimate that 100 employees are killed in excavation-related incidents each year in the U.S. Trenching and excavation activity has been a national priority, and inspections in that industry have been targeted since OSHA's inception in 1970.

Healy can be reached at (303) 843-4500 (x-137).

The OSHA inspection cited TARCO, Inc. for:

• Failure to remove employees from a known hazardous excavation.
  Willful violation = $63,000

• Failure to provide an adequate protective system for employees working in an excavation and allowing water to accumulate in the excavation.
  Willful violation = $63,000

ISSUED AT: 1999 Broadway, Suite 1640, Denver, Colorado. 80202-5716

Willful violations are those committed with an intentional disregard of, or plain indifference to, the requirements of the OSHA Act and its regulations.

TARCO, Inc. has 15 working days from receipt of the citations to request an informal conference with the OSHA area director, or to contest the citations and proposed penalties before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.