Abstract: At about 9:00 a.m. on August 22, 1995, Employee #1, a 43-year-old asbestos removal worker of Westair Technology, Inc., was removing asbestos at a military facility in San Diego. The work was being performed in a 3 ft trench, where a large steam line lies under a street. Employee #1 stepped on a pipe support bracket that broke under his weight and caused a pipe to fall and strike his left ankle. Other workers in the vicinity lifted the pipe off his leg and he was then taken to the employer's medical clinic where he was diagnosed with a fractured ankle. Employee #1 will be off work approximately 4 to 6 months as a result of the accident. No one witnessed the accident. The company specializes in asbestos and lead abatement. Employee #1 was a union-trained insulation worker and had several years experience removing asbestos. Ladders were available for use, but Employee #1 elected not to move the ladder down the trench.