June 2021 is Trench Safety Month
The construction industry is a vital and critical part of the state economies of both Indiana and Illinois, with our part of the country having earned a national reputation for its varied construction operations. See, e.g., “The 50 States of Construction: How Indiana’s thriving economy is driving construction opportunities,” written by Mary Tyler Marsh and published in Construction Dive on January 10, 2018.
For construction workers, their daily routines involve a variety of hazards which can bring serious or deadly bodily injuries. Construction work is one of the most dangerous lines of work in the country. For more, read:
- Construction Worker’s Risk of Dying on the Job Jumps 41% According to New Report;
- Construction Workers in Indiana and Illinois Deserve Respect for Working One of the Most Dangerous of Jobs;
- Construction Worker’s Danger of Being Hurt or Killed on the Job: High Risk and Little Protection.
Excavation and Trenching on the Construction Site
One of the highest risks of severe injury or fatality facing construction workers in this country has garnered an insufficient safety focus: that of excavation and trenching dangers. Workers involved in trenching or excavation efforts are always in jeopardy of suffering permanent harm or dying on the job in a tragic accident where safety protections have failed or been ignored by those responsible for the work site.
What is Excavation and Trenching?
Excavation and trenching are necessary tasks in many, if not most, construction projects. While the terms have been used interchangeably by some, they are not the same thing.
According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”), an excavation is “any man-made cut, cavity, trench, or depression in the Earth’s surface formed by earth removal.” Meanwhile, OSHA defines a trench as “…a narrow excavation (in relation to its length) made below the surface of the ground. In general, the depth of a trench is greater than its width, but the width of a trench (measured at the bottom) is not greater than 15 feet (4.6 m).”
Excavations are any kind of effort where workers are digging on the construction site. All excavations move away surface soil or rock deposits in order to make some sort of needed hole, tunnel, or other form of cavity. Excavations can be large or small, and are needed for a variety of reasons.
Trenches are a specific form of excavation that are narrow and underground. Trenches are commonly used in the placement of utility lines (gas, cable, telephone, etc.) and other infrastructure.
Both excavation and trenching operations are subject to federal safety standards, as defined in 29 C.F.R. Part 1926, Subpart P.
Why are Trenching and Excavation Operations So Dangerous?
Construction workers must be wary of the possibility of a serious accident anytime they are tasked with any type of trenching or excavation effort. They are undertaking work where any number of serious hazards may result in an on-the-job accident.
They include the following:
1] Asphyxiation
When construction workers are on the job in an underground trench, they face the risk of toxic gases or insufficient oxygen in the work zone. If they are working with water lines, they may suffocate from escaping water and asphyxiate through drowning. See:
- The High Risk of a Deadly Confined Space Accident on the Job;
- Respiratory Protection: Deadly Dangers Facing Variety of Workers in Indiana and Illinois.
2] Cave-Ins
According to OSHA, cave-ins are the biggest danger facing a construction worker involved in excavation work on the job site. Cave-ins cause the most worker fatalities of any kind of trench and excavation accident. Why? OSHA explains that dirt is very heavy: one cubic yard of soil can weigh the same as a car.
In a cave-in, the trench or excavation itself can implode, or fall in upon itself, if it is insufficiently bolstered. Additionally, there is the risk of the materials removed through the act of excavating (think the mound of dirt sitting next to the hole or tunnel) falling into the excavation.
3] Electrocutions
Construction workers on the job in a trench may be exposed to utility lines that carry electricity, even if their task does not involve dealing with that particular line or service. Contact with live electricity in the trench can result in a worker fatality.
Electrocutions can also occur anytime the workers are tasked with any form of excavation on the job site. Underground utility lines, if hit or contacted by any tool or machine or even the hand or foot of the worker on the job, can result in an electrocution. See:
- Electrical Injuries and Electrocution Accidents on the Construction Site;
- Electricity Injuries: Fatal Electrocution Accidents.
4] Falls
Any hole or gutter on a construction site poses a hazard for workers. However, when these excavations are of some depth, then the opening poses a risk of serious injury in a severe or fatal fall.
Under federal safety standards, when any excavation on a construction site is at least six feet (6’) deep, safety protocols must be in place to protect the workers. This includes having guardrail systems, fences, barricades, or covers at the edge of the well, pit, shaft, or similar excavation to protect the workers from a potentially deadly fall. See, 29 C.F.R. 1926.501.
For more, read:
- Deadly Construction Accidents: Falls Remain a Leading Cause of Death for Construction Workers;
- Construction Worker Deaths: Almost Half of All Construction Fatalities Caused by Falls.
Employer Has Duty to Protect Workers Involved in Excavation and Trenching
The state laws of Indiana and Illinois, as well as federal regulations, have long established the employer’s duty to provide a safe workplace for workers on the job. This duty of care and safety includes making sure that the construction work site is prepared and ready for any type of excavation or trenching to be done without harm to the workers.
Overall, the construction site should have known protection systems in place before any type of excavation begins. These include sloping (angling of the trench walls); shoring (bracing of the trench walls); and shielding (building box structures inside the excavation to protect the workers).
However, construction management, contractors, and supervisors also have a duty that includes safety measures like the following:
- Knowing the proper proximity of nearby structures for safety of the workers doing the excavating;
- Inspecting the physical condition of nearby structures to ensure the safety of workers doing nearby excavating;
- Inspecting the excavation site itself for hazardous conditions before workers are allowed to enter the work site;
- Researching the soil classification before any digging begins;
- Sharing information regarding the soil found on the site with the workers doing the excavation;
- Researching the location of the water table, as well as surface and ground water on the job site;
- Sharing the information regarding the water, surface and underground, on the site with the workers doing the excavation;
- Researching the location of all utilities on the site, both overhead and underground;
- Sharing the location of all utilities on the site with the workers doing the excavation;
- Making sure that weather conditions are not hazardous at the time of any excavation work;
- Preventing excavation work during hazardous weather;
- Researching the shoring or protective systems that may be required;
- Providing the necessary shoring or protective systems;
- Researching fall protection needs;
- Providing fall protection for the workers;
- Researching the number of ladders that may be needed; and
- Providing the necessary number of ladders for the excavation.
Trench or Excavation Accident Injuries: Construction Workers in Indiana or Illinois
The failure of an employer to provide proper protections to construction workers tasked with any type of trenching or excavation work can result in legal liability for any resulting worker accident and its consequences.
Construction workers who have been seriously injured or killed in an excavation or trenching accident may have legal claims for justice against their employer as well as other parties, such as contractors, sub-contractors, suppliers, and other third parties whose negligence has contributed to the incident.
For more on dangers on the construction site, read:
- Deadly Construction Fall Accidents: Duty to Provide Fall Safety Equipment Protections for Construction Workers;
- Legal Protection for Construction Workers from High Risk and Danger of Serious Injury or Death on the Job;
- Construction Workers: The Most Dangerous Job Today.
June 2021 is Trench Safety Month. Construction workers deserve to be kept safe from harm while on the job, especially when undertaking known dangers like excavation or trenching jobs. Please be careful out there!
