Abstract: Employee #1 and two coworkers were engaged in a trenching operation at a city water filtration plant. They were preparing to connect a 4 in. cast iron drain pipe from a water vault under construction to an already-installed 6 in. drain line. The approximately 40 ft long trench was 27 to 32 in. wide and had been dug with an east-to-west orientation. Its western end extended about 12 ft into an paved asphalt plant road, and pavement and curbing had been removed with a jackhammer before the trench was dug. The job superintendent was operating the backhoe when its bucket struck and broke the 6 in. drain line. Employee #1 entered the trench and was shoveling dirt from around the pipe when a 2 to 3 ft thick and 13 ft long section of soil caved in from under the pavement on the southern wall, burying him. About 15 minutes later, rescuers uncovered his head and it was determined that he was dead. The trench was estimated to have been about 14 ft deep at the point where the cave-in occurred.