Text For Citation: 01 Item/Group: 001A Hazard:

29 CFR 1926.20(b)(2): Such programs shall provide for frequent and regular inspections of the job sites, materials, and equipment to be made by competent persons designated by the employers. a) On or about April 25, 2024, the employer failed to ensure that frequent and regular inspections of the jobsite were completed by a competent person, exposing employees to various hazards. These included unsupported utility lines; caught-in hazards due to egress of the trench being greater than 25 feet from the working location; struck-by hazards from undermining along the North and South sides under the roadway; and cave-in hazards due to working in the 16-foot deep trench without a trench box or an alternative protection system. Additional hazards included the use of steel road plates vertically to hold back soil without approval from a registered professional engineer, the absence of tabulated data for steel trench boxes on site, failure to ensure trench boxes were rated for the soil depth of the excavation per manufacturer specifications, struck-by hazards from stacked aluminum trench boxes not being pinned together to prevent sliding or kickouts, and struck by hazards due to trench boxes not being backfilled to prevent shifting.