Ironworker Working in a Trench Dies When He Is Crushed by an Adjacent Retaining Wall That Fell on Him — California

SUMMARY

On June 7, 2023, a 49-year-old male Hispanic ironworker and three co-workers were working in a five-foot-deep trench preparing to install rebar for the foundation of a new perimeter wall. The new wall was being built adjacent to an existing cinderblock retaining wall on a neighboring property. The workers dug below the level of the base or footing of the adjacent retaining wall. Shoring was not in place and no bracing or underpinning was used to ensure the stability of the existing wall. The trench undermined the neighboring wall, which suddenly collapsed. The wall fell on the ironworker in the trench and crushed him to death.

CONTRIBUTING FACTORS

• A hazard assessment was not conducted by a competent person
• Lack of worker training on trench safety
• Inadequate bracing of the adjacent wall.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The California FACE (CA/FACE) investigator determined that, in order to prevent similar incidents, construction companies should:

• Ensure that a competent person conducts daily hazard assessments of the trenching operation.
• Ensure subcontractors and workers are properly supervised and trained in the hazards of working around unsupported masonry walls.
• Ensure that bracing, shoring or underpinning are used to support adjacent walls that are potentially unstable.

Ironworker Working in a Trench Dies When He Is Crushed by an Adjacent Retaining Wall That Fell on Him — California [PDF – 965 KB]