Inspection Detail

Inspection: 304321235 - Monroe Plumbing And Heating

Inspection Information - Office: Saint Louis Area Office

Investigation Summary

Employee #1 and other employees were working in an excavation that was 13-feet-deep. They were installing sewer lines. They were at a spot where a small line branching off the main sewer line was to be installed. The smaller trench line was at an angle off the main trench. A 2-foot-by-3-foot-by-1-foot rock was found at the bottom of the corner where the smaller line connected to the larger main line. It was removed for the connection. A hydraulic hose blew on the backhoe. The adult son of the owner, one of the supervisors, told the other employees to not go into the trench until he got back. Employee #1, the owner of the company, who due to his age limited himself in the amount of work he actually performed on the job site decided to go ahead and glue the small side pipe onto the larger one. When he bent down to glue the pipe, the corner where the rock had been removed slid off the wall up to a height of 6 feet, covering Employee #1. The other employees were able to uncover his head within five minutes. Emergency responders were on the scene and helped to remove him from under the dirt within 10 minutes after the accident. Employee #1 died approximately two hours later at the hospital due to massive interior bleeding in the chest.

Keywords: CHEST, EXCAVATION, HEAD, WALL, ROCK, TRENCH, PIPE, CAVE-IN, BACKHOE