Overview
- The most recent collapse occurred Wednesday at a commercial site in Handy Township where deputies and coworkers pulled a 23-year-old man from a trench and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
- Two earlier rescues involved a 35-year-old worker buried by a trench wall while installing field tile in Oxford Township and a 25-year-old worker trapped below the waist in a trench box at an Orion Township subdivision; both were taken to McLaren Oakland Hospital in stable condition.
- Investigators from the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration are leading probes into all three incidents to examine excavation methods, use of a trench box, and the role of a subcontracted excavation crew.
- Local sheriff’s offices, township fire departments and specialized search-and-rescue and technical teams responded to the scenes and assisted with extrication and on-site recovery efforts.
- Trench collapses are a known construction hazard and investigators will look at whether required protective measures such as shoring, sloping or properly installed trench boxes were used and whether enforcement or inspections follow.