Quick-thinking inspector pulls crews from collapsing trench in Washington
RIDGEFIELD, Wash. (UI) — A Washington Labor & Industries (L&I) inspector stopped work at a sewer installation site in Ridgefield earlier this year after witnessing trench walls repeatedly cave in around workers.
Inspector Tyler Barrick was driving by when he saw crews from Clark County Excavating & General Contracting digging a 12-foot trench without proper safeguards. He photographed employees pulling co-workers out of the excavation by hand because the site’s ladder was too short to reach the surface.
Although a trench box was present, investigators said it was undersized and failed to protect workers from the collapsing walls. Barrick reported that the trench caved in about 20 times as he watched, widening from six to nearly 15 feet. Soil pressure caused the trench box to tilt and nearby steel plating to bend. Workers later said they could hear dirt slamming against the box while inside.
Barrick ordered an immediate work stoppage, cleared the area, and required hazards to be corrected before crews could return.
“All of the necessary safety equipment was on site; it just wasn’t used. If our inspector had not come along, this could have easily ended in tragedy,” said Craig Blackwood, assistant director for L&I’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health.
The company has a history of trenching violations, with previous inspections resulting in seven serious citations. The latest inspection added five willful serious violations, including failing to protect workers from cave-ins and not providing safe entry or exit.
State officials said the case underscores the importance of Washington’s trench safety enforcement, which has included more than 465 inspections since 2023. “We launched our focus on trench safety to spot hazards before a worker gets hurt, and to raise awareness about the hazards of this kind of work,” Blackwood said.
Clark County Excavating is appealing the violations.
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