The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has fined an excavation company for the deaths of two Colorado workers who were trapped for hours in a collapsed trench.
The Fort Collins Coloradoan reported Friday that Firestone-based Backhoe Excavating was fined $31,446 for five citations. The largest fine was more than $13,000 for failing to provide an adequate protective system for the workers, 26-year-old Cristopher Ramirez, of Boulder, and 41-year-old Jorge Valadez, of Denver.
The company also received two citations totaling more than $10,000 for not following specific excavation requirements.
The workers were installing sewer pipe in a 15-foot-deep trench in Windsor on April 16 when it gave way. They were dead when emergency crews reached them.
Crews had used a PVC pipe to communicate with one of the men during the rescue effort.
Was this article valuable?
Here are more articles you may enjoy.
FEMA Chief Resigns After Six Months, Criticism Over Floods 
Five Reasons Why the US Escaped a Hurricane Landfall So Far This Year 
Single Loose Wire Led to Blackout That Caused Dali Crash Into Baltimore Bridge 
NTSB to Decide Probable Cause of Baltimore’s Key Bridge Collapse This Week 
