Trenching & Excavation Accidents 5

Trenching & Excavation Accidents #5

updated on 05/06/2010

Two labourers die as trench caves in
Express News Service Ahmedabad, January 24
TWO labourers died when the trench they were digging near Bhilwas area of Sardarnagar here, caved in on Friday afternoon. They were laying a sewerage pipeline for the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC). The deceased have been identified as Suresh Bhanji (25) and Devilal (30), both hailing from Banswada in Rajasthan and residing at Majoorgam near Geeta Mandir. While, Assistant Engineer of AMC, Ashok Patel also fell in the trench, he lived as he fell on an underground electricity cable on the upper part of the trench. According to Shankar Valji Damor, a fellow labourer who is also the complainant, they were working at the spot since Thursday as they had been employed to dig an 18-feet deep trench for laying drainage pipes. ‘‘About an hour before the incident, we asked permission from the contractors to widen the trench as the earth was loose and damp. But he denied permission as this would have prolonged the work by half a day. It would also have led to an increase in our wages,’’ alleged Damor. ‘‘We knew that the earth was loose and would cave in anytime. And that is exactly what happened,’’ he added. According to Damor, the deceased were at a depth of about 10-feet which made it difficult for the other three labourers to dig them out in time. ‘‘The municipal officer was lucky but not the workers. The supervisor was quick to inform the fire brigade but by the time they arrived, it was too late,’’ said Shakra Kalyan, another labourer. Sardarnagar police have registered a case against labour contractors Jayanti Nagji and Jetha Amra for causing causing death due to negligence under Section 304 (A).

UPDATE OSHA investigates work-site death
By:B.J. O’Brien January 24, 2003 
The Bethel Police Department has deemed that the recent death of an employee of Earthmovers, Inc. at the construction site of the Old Hawleyville Road sewer last week was accidental. Bethel Police Captain Robert Cedergren said that the Occupational Safety Health Administration is still working on the case to determine whether there were any safety violations at the work site. “We investigated to the point that we found it was accidental,” Capt. Cedergren noted, adding that the deparment is not pursuing the case any longer but that it would help OSHA if needed. Ricardo Silva, 25, of Division Street in Danbury was in an excavation ditch Jan. 14 when steel reinforcing plates tilted and hit him. Emergency personnel from the Stony Hill Fire Department arrived at the scene and extricated Mr. Silva. He was then brought to Danbury Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Earthmovers, Inc was unable to be reached for comment. First Selectwoman Judith Novachek said that she had been attending Siting Council hearings on the Northeast Utilities transmission line proposal that day and did not hear about the incident until she returned to her office. “I was devastated,” she said. “I was heartbroken.” She pointed out that Earthmovers has a very good record concerning the care of its employees. “It was something that should never happen,” Mrs. Novachek said. “Nothing we can do will bring him back.” The town’s top official said that the Mr. Silva’s family is being taken care of. “The company I know has done everything it could do for the family,” she said. Mrs. Novachek said that work on the sewer line had ceased for a time following the accident. “I would imagine they were looking at a series of things,” she pointed out. “I can’t fault them for that.”

Equipment Traps Construction Worker, Injuries Not Yet Known
January 23, 2003
HOUSTON — Emergency crews responded to the scene of a construction accident Thursday afternoon, when a worker became trapped in a 14-foot hole that had been shored up, officials said. Authorities said that the accident happened around 3 p.m. in the 14000 block of Hillcroft near Chasewood Drive in southwest Houston. Officials said that a concrete pipe hit the 20-year-old worker, causing him to fall into the hole. He then became wedged between the pipe and concrete. It took about an hour for rescuers to free him, stabilize him and place him on a rescue basket so he could be pulled out of the trench with a crane. He was taken to Ben Taub Hospital in stable condition. His exact injuries are not yet known. 

Gas leak forces UF students out of 2 houses
About 12 University of Florida students were jostled from their morning routine on Wednesday when a construction worker operating a backhoe ruptured a gas line near their residence. The incident occurred about 10 a.m. as Gainesville Regional Utilities’ Water Department workers were installing a new water main underground at the corner of SW 12th Street and SW 7th Avenue, said Thor Wishart of GRU. After the backhoe cut through the 1-inch natural gas pipe, GRU evacuated the residents of the Pilot and Badcock Scholarship houses on SW 12th Street across from UF’s Norman Hall. Gainesville Fire Rescue spokesman Stuart Schwartz said the alarm of a natural gas smell first was received from UF, and firefighters deployed hoses in case of an explosion, but the morning breeze helped disperse the gas. The students were able to return home after about 2 1/2 hours of waiting for the repairs, said Valerie Wright, head resident at the Pilot Scholarship house. Two blocks of 12th Street were blocked off and bus routes were rerouted while crews worked to repair the gas pipe.

1 Dead, 1 Injured In 9th Ward Sewerage Line Accident
Wall Reportedly Collapsed Into Hole
NEW ORLEANS — An accident Wednesday at a 9th Ward sewerage line repair site has killed one worker and injured another. The accident happened at about 2:30 p.m. in the 1300 block of Kentucky Street, where investigators said a wall collapsed into a 10-foot hole where workers were repairing the line, covering two men with dirt and debris. Brian McGee was taken to Charity Hospital, where he is listed in guarded condition with a broken leg. The name of the man who was killed has not been released pending notification of his family. Both were employed by JLJ Construction, which was contracted by the Sewerage and Water Board. The cause of the accident is under investigation.

OMI employee injured
Saturday, January 11, 2003 BY RACHEL GALLAGHER
An Operations Management International employee was injured Friday night while trying to repair a main sewer break just southeast of Atchison Casting Corp. OMI Project Manager Mike Mathews said a large rock and some soil from a wall in a trench gave way and fell on Jesse Smith. Workers had dug a trench about 50 to 75 feet wide to get to the break because raw sewage has been flowing from the area since about 5 p.m. Thursday. OMI staff members began working on the break early Friday morning. The sewer line runs parallel to the Union Pacific Railroad tracks. Because of the proximity of the break to the tracks, Mr. Mathews said, safety concerns prevented workers from beginning repairs until Friday morning. Mr. Mathews said OMI workers were about to finish working on the break before the incident occurred. “It’s kind of a freak thing that happened,” Mr. Mathews said. According to Mr. Mathews, the debris fell on Mr. Smith’s lower body. OMI workers called for emergency help at 5:45 p.m. but were able to dig Mr. Smith out before emergency and fire crews arrived. “He was all out before EMS got there,” Mr. Mathews said. Mr. Mathews said it looked as though Mr. Smith’s left leg was badly injured but everything else appeared to be fine. He was taken by ambulance to Atchison Hospital. Despite the accident, Mr. Mathews said his crew was going to press on to complete the repair of the sewer line Friday night. 

UPDATE, State investigating trench collapse
By Kara Richardson Lansing State Journal
State investigators are looking into whether a trench collapse that buried a man alive Tuesday in a Holt subdivision could have been prevented. Arthur Krass, 43, of Portland was trapped 15 feet below ground when a ditch’s dirt walls collapsed. He was installing plumbing after sunset at a Beechnut Trail home that was under construction. Nine fellow workers tried to dig Krass out but failed. Later, it took firefighters three hours to unearth his body. Officials from the state Department of Consumer and Industry Services’ Bureau of Safety and Regulation will investigate whether the company Krass worked for, Precision Plumbing of Grand Ledge, took proper safety precautions, said Lori Donlan, a department spokeswoman. The bureau reviews all fatal workplace incidents, she said. “Sometimes an accident is an accident,” Donlan said. Investigators will visit the scene and interview witnesses to see if the trench was properly supported, sloped or shored up, said Maura Campbell, also a consumer and industry services department spokeswoman. The investigation, which could take several weeks, should determine whether any Michigan Occupational Safety & Health Administration regulations were violated, she said. No one from Precision Plumbing or Krass’ family could be reached for comment. Precision Plumbing of Grand Ledge has not been cited for workplace violations in the past, Campbell said. If the employer knew there was a problem and didn’t take steps to correct it, a citation could cost the company up to $70,000 in fines. “The penalties are not set up to equate to injury or loss of life,” Campbell said. “It’s to underscore the importance of safe work sites.” Only one of the 24 Michigan construction-related fatalities in 2002 was trench-related, Campbell said. The Ingham County Sheriff’s Office is still investigating the incident’s cause, Detective J. Verhougstraete said. Contact Kara Richardson at 267-1301 or [email protected].

1 Killed In Falls County Construction Accident
One person is dead and two others hospitalized after a construction accident in Falls County. It happened around one o’clock Wednesday afternoon near Highway 14 six miles South of Kosse. The three workers were digging a trench when the walls collapsed. 29 year old Jesus Torres Martinez of Waco was pronounced dead on arrival at Scott and White hospital in Temple. Pedro Pizano of Bellmead and Ledio Zuniga of waco were injured. They are both in stable condition at Limestone Medical Center in Groesbeck with internal injuries.

Gas Line Accident Forces School to Evacuate
Dozens of people in South Sioux City have been evacuated after crews hit a gas line Wednesday morning. The city’s water department says crews were trying to fix a water main break along 23rd and C streets when they accidentally hit a gas line. Everyone on the block, including a nearby school, was evacuated. MidAmerican Energy was on the scene to fix the leak. City leaders didn’t know how long it will take to fix the problem, or how much it will cost.

Plumber Trapped When Walls Of Trench Collapse
Firefighters Free 81-Year-Old Man
OKLAHOMA CITY — Joe Whitlock has worked with pipes and wrenches for 44 years, but his experience didn’t prepare him for what he encountered on Monday. Whitlock, owner of Joe’s Plumbing, was helping to repair a sewer line in south Oklahoma City when the walls of a trench in which he was standing collapsed. Whitlock, 81, was buried up to his waist as dirt clogged the trench. A co-worker driving a trackhoe carved a snaking trench from the back of a house to the edge of the yard. The trench was about as wide as a man’s shoulders. Whitlock was partially inside the trench, using an extending tool to probe for the sewer line about 1:15 p.m. when the collapse happened. “His legs are tangled up, one behind the other one,” said fire Maj. Brian Stanaland about two hours into the rescue. “We have a harness on him, but there’s a void beneath him. … The area is just so small it’s hard to dig. It’s about the size (width) of a manhole cover.” Whitlock’s feet were at the original bottom of the trench, about 10 feet below ground, Stanaland said. Shovels or garden trowels were too large to work, so rescuers used their bare hands to claw earth into a coffee can that was then raised above-ground and emptied over and over. Some of the firefighters, including those trained in trench rescues, worked in 15-minute shifts. Even Whitlock, his face covered by an oxygen mask, helped with the digging. “We wanted to keep him warm because there were obvious concerns about hypothermia,” Stanaland said. Whitlock was freed just before 4 p.m. He refused to be carried to a waiting ambulance and walked over to paramedics instead. After hugging his wife and daughter, Whitlock was taken to the University of Oklahoma Medical Center for a checkup and observation.

Tower worker dies in mud pit 
ST. AMANT — Firefighters executing a “delicate and complicated operation” shored a 20-foot-deep mudhole with plywood so they could safely rappel in Friday night to recover the body of a communications tower worker crushed to death in a pool of mud. Recovery workers arrived on the scene off Laural Ridge Road just before 1:30 p.m., but the first recovery worker did not descend into the hole until 7 p.m., Gonzales Fire Chief Butch Browning said. “This is an extremely delicate and complicated operation. That’s why it’s taking so long. We have to shore up the hole first before any of our guys go in,” Browning said late Friday afternoon. When the first firefighter went in, a cave-in occurred, so recovery workers pulled out and started over. “We’re going to use some new, more stable ground and do some more shoring,” Browning said at 8 p.m. Friday. “It might be at least another two hours.” Firefighters received a call that two men working down in a guy wire anchor hole of a nearby cell phone tower were trapped by wet mud at the bottom of the pit. One of the men managed to escape from the mud by the time firefighters arrived. But a second workman apparently died before recovery workers could get to him. Browning said the preliminary investigation showed that the weight of the wet mud and soil, which was reportedly waist to chest deep, forced the victim to stop breathing. “He probably suffocated because of the weight of the soil,” Browning said. The body of Pat Acker, 32, of Abilene, Texas, was recovered Friday night. Mike Wetzel, 27, also of Abilene, was flown on by paramedics Friday afternoon to Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center. Wetzel remained under treatment at the hospital Friday night, said Col. Tony Bacala of the Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office. Acker and Wetzel both worked for Sky High Towers of Abilene, the company hired by the owners of the tower, Pinnacle Towers Inc. of Sarasota, Fla. Firefighters from the Gonzales Fire Department, the St. Amant Volunteer Fire Department, the 7th District Fire Department, the Sorrento Volunteer Fire Department and the Prairieville Fire Department worked together in an effort to recover the body trapped by wet mud from the cave-in. St. Amant Fire Chief James LeBlanc said one of the biggest problems facing the recovery operation was water that constantly flooded into the hole. “We must have pumped out more than 200 gallons of water so far,” LeBlanc said around 5:30 p.m. Seven of Browning’s firefighters recently were trained in trench rescue and recovery techniques two months ago at the LSU Fire and Emergency Training Institute. “It’s been exactly like in class. Textbook so far,” Gonzales District Fire Chief Dwayne Gipson said. Gipson said he and his classmates went through a very similar exercise involving a victim trapped in a water hole on the last day of class. “Nobody is nervous about going in. Everyone here is rescue-certified,” Gipson said. The Gonzales firefighters also had the comfort of working with their LSU instructor from the class, Chris Browning, who went to the scene with extra equipment. Chris Browning is Butch Browning’s brother. Firefighters used more than 40 sheets of quarter-inch plywood to line the inside of the hole to ensure the mud would not cave in again while firefighters were inside to recover the body. Jack Jones, a member of the Sorrento Volunteer Fire Department, said there were two collapses, or cave-ins, while firefighters tried to shore up the walls of the pit before the first firefighter went inside. Two safety inspectors with the U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration arrived at the scene of the emergency after 5 p.m. to look into what kind of safety precautions could have been taken to protect the workers in the pit. The inspectors said they plan to return to the site Monday for further investigation.

Cave-in claims 1: Bluefield city worker killed in trench collapse
By CHARLES OWENS of the Daily Telegraph staff January 04, 2003 
BLUEFIELD – A city employee died Friday after being buried under several feet of dirt, mud and rock in a tragic construction accident on Rogers Street. The veteran employee of the Bluefield Sanitary Board was trapped in the trench collapse shortly af-ter 3 p.m. Doz-ens of rescue workers braved frigid temperatures and snow for more than four hours in the desperate rescue mission. “He was completely buried with a large amount of dirt, mud, water and very heavy pieces of concrete,” Bluefield Rescue Squad Chief Robert Youther said. “It was a cave-in of the walls and the structural integrity of the ditch.” It took rescue crews until 7:20 p.m. to remove the man’s body from the site. Youther said the trench was 6 to 8 feet long and 2 to 3 feet wide, “It’s just a sad day when a construction worker dies in an accident like this,” Chandler Swope, president of Swope Construction Company of Bluefield, said. “It just breaks my heart when an accident like this happens, and I hope it will never happen to any of my people.” outher said officials knew almost immediately that the man didn’t survive the accident. The collapse occurred just above McDonald’s on Bluefield Avenue, which prompted officials to order an evacuation and closure of the restaurant for safety reasons. The man’s identity wasn’t released late Friday pending a notification of next of kin. “We haven’t found his wife yet, and we need to contact his next of kin,” Bluefield Sanitary Board President Terry Honaker said. “We’ve already notified OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Administration).” Honaker said the crew was asked to repair a sewer line on Rogers Street damaged by a recent slide in the area. Honaker said he had just ordered the construction site closed prior to the accident. “I don’t know at this point why he (the victim) went back into the ditch,” Honaker said. “I just know we had made a decision to shut it down. We had already made up our minds about this, and we were going to go home for the weekend.” Because the construction site was closed, a trench box- or device used to prevent the sides of a ditch from collapsing – wasn’t immediately utilized at the time of the accident. Honaker said he didn’t know why the man went back into the ditch. “For one reason or another, he stepped back in the ditch,” Honaker said. “This crew is really close. It’s been together for a long time.” Honaker said the victim was a 16-year veteran of the Sanitary Board, and the backhoe operator was a 26-year veteran employee. He said a crew of four men were working on the sewer line at the time of the collapse. Swope said his crews responded to the accident as soon as they learned of the tragedy. “It’s my understanding that the city Sanitary Board was relocating a broken sewer line below the McDonald’s building,” Swope said. “There was some type of problem in the ditch. I’m certain OSHA will come in and investigate very promptly.” The Bluefield Rescue Squad, Bluefield Fire Department and Bluefield Police Department also assisted in the recovery. “A rescue of this type is extremely dangerous,” Swope said. “The rescue workers have to be very cautious.” Honaker said the OSHA investigators are expected to arrive at the site of the accident today.

UPDATE, Trench collapse fatality probed; Warm temperatures may have contributed to Highland cave-in
By Mike Martindale / The Detroit News
HIGHLAND TOWNSHIP — A worker’s death in a trench cave-in this week is under investigation by the state of Michigan and the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department. William C. Amolsch, 43, of Novi was working in a 15-foot hole outside Aqua Marine Pools and Spa on Highland Road about 3:30 p.m. when the walls collapsed. “They had set one pipe in the ground and had just set the second one when he went down in the hole to unhook the chain from a backhoe,” said Lt. Mike Sutton of the Sheriff’s township substation. “He was bent over working on the pipe when there was a cave-in, and he was forced against a concrete pipe, buried to the waist.” Sutton said co-workers and bystanders tried to dig Amolsch out, and the township fire department was called. Amolsch was pronounced dead at the scene. Amolsch’s co-workers were interviewed by investigators, and a preliminary investigation indicated that Monday’s warming temperatures may have contributed to the walls’ collapse, Sutton said. An autopsy Tuesday by the Oakland County Medical Examiner found that Amolsch died from a blunt-force injury to his head. In January 2001, a man working on a sewer line in Huntington Woods died after being buried under 20 feet of dirt, just one month after a similar death in Detroit involving a Redford Township sewer worker. Two workers in Warren were injured that same month in yet another trench cave-in but survived. In 1999 four Michigan workers died in cave-ins, including a Wayne County death in which a company was charged for having workers inside an 11-foot-deep trench without the appropriate support walls. Lt. Sutton said Amolsch was married with four children, ages 7, 8, 17 and 18. “It’s my understanding the family had no insurance, and contributions would be appreciated,” said Sutton. Anyone wishing to contribute to the family can do so through the William Amolsch Fund c/o Fifth Third Bank, 411 Town Center Drive, Highland, MI 48356.

Construction workers hit natural gas line
From staff reports
Construction workers digging a trench behind Boonsboro Shopping Center punctured a gas line Wednesday morning, spreading natural gas fumes through the neighborhood. The Lynchburg Fire & EMS Department cordoned off the affected area behind the shopping center but didn’t close traffic on adjacent Boonsboro Road. Two nearby stores were evacuated but most were allowed to stay open, including Food Lion. “We just told the workers not to go out back,” said Anthony V. Smith, battalion chief of the Lynchburg Fire & EMS Department. “You don’t really want someone stepping out for a cigarette.” Natural gas rises into the atmosphere, Smith said, making it less dangerous than a propane gas leak. He said propane gas is heavier than air and stays low to the ground, increasing the odds for an explosion or fire. “Propane really scares me more than natural gas,” Smith said. “Natural gas is lighter than air and it rises.” Humidity prevented the natural gas from rising, though, so fire department workers remained on the scene, monitoring gas levels throughout the afternoon. Gas could be heard escaping from the pipe as Columbia Gas of Virginia workers fixed the leak. The leak was sealed at 2:30 p.m. The construction workers were doing sewage work for Forehand Inc. Property Management, which owns the shopping center. There were no injuries, Smith said. Phone calls to Columbia Gas of Virginia representatives were not returned.

Gas line break cuts service to Mannford
2002-12-31 By The Associated Press
MANNFORD — Hundreds of households and businesses in Mannford will likely be without natural gas service until Wednesday after a construction crew broke the town’s supply line, the city manager said. The crew digging for a new activity center in the town about 15 miles east of Tulsa snapped the 4-inch line about 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, city manager Jim Whitlock said. About 500 to 600 households and businesses will not have natural gas, which they use for heat and cooking, until Wednesday afternoon, Whitlock said. Workers are repairing the line, he said. “We regret it happened, and obviously we have had a lot of calls, some understanding and some not so understanding,” Whitlock said. “We’re doing what we can to fix it, but its an unavoidable construction accident.” The city is the natural gas provider for the 2,600 residents who live in the Creek County town, buying gas from Oklahoma Gas and Electric and distributing to its roughly 800 to 900 households and businesses. Whitlock said the natural gas line is typically buried 4-feet under the ground but was only about 2 1/2-feet below at the construction site because of shallow dirt over a bed of rock.

Local Father Dies In Construction Accident; Crews Were Repairing Parking Lot
December 31, 2002
HIGHLAND TOWNSHIP, Mich.– A local father was reportedly killed in a construction accident in Highland Township Monday afternoon. Construction crews were repairing the parking lot in front of Aquamarine Fiberglass Pools on West Highland Road, according to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department. As workers placed cement pipes into a large hole, witnesses said that the 43-year-old victim jumped into the hole. The pit then collapsed, according to the Sheriff’s Department. The worker was then reportedly crushed by one of the mammoth pipes. ther workers reportedly jumped in to save the man, but it was too late. The man was pronounced dead at Huron Valley Hospital, the station reported. The Sheriff’s Department is coordinating a fund to help the family get through the tragedy, Local 4 reported.

Worker drowns, 2 hurt as construction ditch caves in
By Essam Al-Ghalib, Arab News Staff JEDDAH, 29 December 2002 
An expatriate worker was killed in an accident at a construction site in the Al-Ruwais district of Jeddah yesterday evening. Shukun Mia, a 28-year-old Bangladeshi, was pumping water out of a ditch in this working class residential area with two others when its sides collapsed, burying them all. While two of the victims were able to keep their heads above the three-feet-deep water, Mia became completely submerged and remained stuck underneath a landslide of mud and rocks. The sewage project on which the three workers were engaged is being undertaken by the Bin Samar Construction Company. Civil Defense personnel quickly arrived on the scene to free the two men who survived the accident, and they were transported to King Fahd Hospital with minor injuries. However, it took rescuers one and a half hours to remove the dead man’s body using heavy lifting equipment. Rescue efforts were complicated by a continuous flow of water into the ditch. Majid Abdullah Al-Ghamdi, a civil defense officer, was lowered into the ditch and used his hands to remove the rocks that were on top of the victim. He then tied a rope under the dead man’s shoulders, and a crane was used to lift the victim’s body out. Almaz Hussein, a co-worker of the dead man, told Arab News at the scene: When the ditch collapsed, we tried to get the men out. We were able to keep the heads of the two workers above water until the rescuers arrived. But we could not get Shukun out. He struggled to free himself for almost two minutes, but then lost consciousness. Mia has been a construction worker in the Kingdom for five years, and had just returned from vacation after visiting his family in Bangladesh. Over 300 people gathered to watch the rescue efforts and extra police personnel were called in to control the crowd. There was a danger of further landslide conditions being created by the crowd trying to peer into the ditch to watch the rescue efforts. Police officers used wooden sticks and threw stones to keep the crowd back. Police took in five people, including the project manager and an engineer, for questioning. There are more than a million Third World immigrants in the Kingdom who work in the construction industry, and they earn as little as SR150 a month. Safety standards on construction sites are often poorly enforced.

Workers dig up triple trouble; Phone, gas, water lines broken in day of errors
By MARDEE ROBERTS The Leaf-Chronicle 
A trio of errors resulted in the intersection of Madison and 10th streets being blocked to traffic for hours Thursday while gas, water and telephone crews worked to fix a cascading set of problems. Clarksville Gas and Water Department and BellSouth workers faced the triple threat of a leaking gas main, a broken water main and a severed telephone fiber optic cable that serves businesses along Madison Street and Memorial Drive. Utility officials on the scene Thursday afternoon were still trying to sort out what happened. Initial reports indicated a Murfreesboro company installing a new traffic signal pole for the city hit the fiber cable in front of Kiddieland with an auger sometime before noon. Jeffrey Reed, foreman for S&W Contractors, said when BellSouth employees arrived, his crews moved across the street toward the front of a car wash to continue their work. “Then we hit the water line,” Reed said. “It wasn’t marked.” Complicating matters, all the Gas and Water service telephone lines were out because of the fiber optic problem. Employees had to work out a communications plan, including using cellular phones to dispatch water crews to fix the leak. Meanwhile, BellSouth brought in a contractor to dig around the cable break, and the contractor may have hit a gas line. “It’s possible. We had a contractor digging a hole for us and then we started smelling gas,” said Pat Hooper, a BellSouth network manager. Firefighters and police blocked Madison and 10th streets while gas crews worked to stop the leak. Traffic was rerouted down Greenwood Avenue and down Commerce and 11th streets. Clarksville Fire Rescue Assistant Chief David Clinard said officials could smell a strong odor of natural gas when they arrived. Also, rerouting traffic and blocking the road is department protocol whenever natural gas leaks are present, Clinard said. The fiber cable problems knocked out phone lines and checkout debit card readers to some businesses on Madison Street. Crews hoped to have the problems fixed Thursday night, but were still on the scene with the road blocked at 11 p.m.

Two Hurt in Trench Collapse
At least two men were hurt when the trench they were working in apparently collapsed. It happened at a Penelec power substation off Route 267 near Meshoppen in Susquehanna County. Emergency crews said two men were stuck in the trench for 10-to-15 minutes. Their co-workers got them out before emergency crews arrived. They were flown to Community Medical Center in Scranton for treatment. Their names and conditions were not released. Investigators from Occupational Health and Safety Administration, or OSHA, said they will check out the collapse in Susquehanna County.

UPDATE, Lack of Cave-in Protection Cited in Savannah, Ga., Fatal Accident
OSHA Proposes $51,550 in Penalties for Thomaston Company
SAVANNAH, Ga. — The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration today cited Pitts Plumbing for failing to protect workers from trenching and excavation hazards at an Abercorn Street construction site. Proposed penalties total $51,550. OSHA began an investigation Oct. 8, after a Pitts Plumbing employee died from injuries sustained in a trench cave-in. Workers had dug a 40-foot long, 9-foot deep trench, approximately 7-feet wide that the victim entered to take measurements in preparation for the installation of two 2,500-gallon tanks. Another worker assisting him at ground level noticed that asphalt around the trench opening was beginning to crack. He called to his co-worker who tried to run to safety but was hit by the collapsing trench wall. “This employer was aware of excavation safety requirements, but chose not to use protective devices,” said Kurt Petermeyer, OSHA’s acting area director in Savannah. “That decision ended in tragedy.” The company received one willful citation with a proposed penalty of $49,000 for failing to protect employees working in an excavation by using a trench box or by properly sloping the trench walls to prevent cave-ins. The agency issues a willful citation when an employer has shown an intentional disregard of, or plain indifference to, the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and regulations. OSHA also issued two citations for alleged serious violations with penalties totaling $2,550 for failing to provide workers with hard hats while working in the trench and for failing to provide a ladder long enough to allow employees to safely enter and exit the trench. A serious citation is issued when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known. Petermeyer noted that employers might not comply with trenching and excavation standards because of time and cost concerns. He said OSHA has a national trenching and excavation emphasis program aimed at preventing unsafe conditions. Employers may request individual compliance assistance from local OSHA offices and attend agency-sponsored workshops. This part of the program is separate from the agency’s strong enforcement effort, which allows OSHA staff to stop and inspect any trench or excavation that appears hazardous. The company has 15 working days to contest the OSHA citations and proposed penalties before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. Staff from the Savannah OSHA office located at 450 Mall Blvd., Suite J, conducted the investigation; phone: (912) 652-4393.

Trench cave-in injures man
A man working on a Metropolitan Flood Control District project in Clovis was injured Friday morning when the side of a 10-foot trench caved in on him, burying him to his chest for about 10 minutes, Clovis Fire Department officials reported. The man, Joseph Stubbs, 37, complained of pain to his right leg and was taken to University Medical Center for treatment. Dan Guice, a fire battalion chief, applauded Stubbs’ co-workers for immediately starting to dig him out. When firefighters arrived, he said, Stubbs had already been uncovered to about his knees. An employee of Fresno contractor Scheidt, Hayden & Hall Inc., Stubbs was part of a crew working on storm drain project when the accident happened.

UPDATE, State investigating death of construction worker
Associated Press
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – State labor officials are investigating the death of a construction worker who died when an embankment collapsed on him at the Mall of South Carolina construction site. Juan Vazquez, 31, of Tabor City, N.C., was inside a 9-foot deep trench installing drainage pipe Wednesday when a side of the ditch collapsed, officials said. Vazquez, who worked for A.O. Hardee and Sons Inc., was trapped under 4 feet of dirt before fellow workers could pull him out, officials said. The Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation is investigating, spokesman Jim Knight said. He said it has been about two years since a construction worker was killed in a similar accident in the state. There were 27 construction deaths in the state last year, he said.

Gas line ruptures; officials close Spring Hill Drive
DAVE SHELTON
SPRING HILL – Spring Hill Drive was closed more than an hour Thursday morning after a contractor broke through a natural gas main. Although emergency officials discussed it, no homes were evacuated in the vicinity as firefighters determined that a gusty breeze was dissipating the explosive gas. Many parents called two nearby schools, Deltona and Westside elementary, voicing concern for their children’s safety. School officials said they left the decision on whether to evacuate up to Spring Hill Fire and Rescue District which had command of the scene. According to emergency personnel at the scene, a construction crew was digging a trench for installation of underground fiber optic cables when the gas line was broken. The line is owned by Heritage Propane. It wasn’t immediately determined if the equipment operator missed the colored flag markers or if the markers had been wrongly located or moved. Natural gas immediately began spewing from the trench and could be smelled for blocks, according to witnesses. The first call was received by Spring Hill Fire at 8:48 a.m. The first firefighters on the scene closed Spring Hill Drive, diverting traffic to Pinehurst Drive. The busy four-lane thoroughfare remained closed for nearly two hours, until after a crew from Heritage had capped off both ends of the broken gas main. It took nearly an hour for emergency equipment from the gas company to get to the scene. With its special equipment, the crew was able to crimp-off one end of the gas line and stopped the flow at the other end at a shut-off valve. The county Emergency Management office said Heritage estimated about 1,370 cubic feet of gas had escaped before the line was capped. Traffic was diverted around the area by volunteers from the Spring Hill Fire Police and sheriff’s deputies.

UPDATE, Contractor investigated in fatality; Trench fell in on worker; 2nd man out of hospital
By Valarie Honeycutt Spears
State labor officials began an investigation yesterday of the Lexington contractor who employed one man who died and another who was injured after they were trapped Tuesday in a narrow trench. State Labor Cabinet spokesman Eddie Jacobs identified the contractor as Gary Wise of Lexington and said officials opened an investigation into the circumstances surrounding Tuesday’s cave-in at a home on Woodley Circle. Wise could not be reached for comment yesterday. The man who died, Carmel Angel Isiodoro-Mayo, 30, and the injured man, identified as Gregorio Reyes, 35, were part of a construction crew waterproofing a basement and installing drain lines. Reyes, who was trapped for two hours, was released yesterday from the University of Kentucky Medical Center, where he was treated for leg injuries. The city’s immigrant coordinator said that because both victims had immigrated to Lexington from Mexico, he will ask the local panel that helps migrant workers to tackle the broader issue of Hispanic worker safety. “After we take care of any immediate needs involving the victims, it will be something we’ll want to look into,” said Abdon Ibarra, the Urban County Government official. Jacobs said he could not discuss any specifics about the state investigation, but he described what investigators look for in similar cases. Occupational Safety and Health regulations require that ditches deeper than 5 feet be properly shored up and have exits and entrances. The ditch involved in the accident was 8 feet deep, fire officials said. Workers must be specifically trained to work in the trench. Jacobs would not say whether the Cabinet had taken any immediate action. The investigation could take eight to 10 weeks. Ibarra said that advocates who work with Hispanics were trying to piece together information about the men yesterday. He said that the men apparently knew each other, but it was not immediately known where they lived. Isiodoro-Mayo died from asphyxiation when the dirt fell on him, a Fayette County coroner’s report said. Lexington Police Lt. James Curless said that as a matter of course, his department will review the accidental death along with the coroner’s office. Lexington Fire Chief William Halloran said it took firefighters more than four hours to remove the body. The homeowner, Charles Hill, has declined to comment, except to call the death a “tragic accident.”

Ditch collapses, kills worker at mall site, 31-year-old’s death remains under investigation
By Tonya Root
A 31-year-old Tabor City, N.C., man died Wednesday afternoon after part of a ditch collapsed on him at the Mall of South Carolina construction site. Juan Vazquez, 31, an employee of A.O. Hardee and Son Inc., was installing stormwater pipe in the ditch when the accident occurred, officials said. Co-workers pulled Vazquez from the ditch and called emergency officials at 12:54 p.m., Myrtle Beach fire Lt. Dan Walker said. “They had him out when we got there,” Walker said. Horry County Emergency Medical Service officials took him to Grand Strand Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 1:28 p.m., Horry County Coroner Robert Edge said. An autopsy is scheduled for today to determine Vazquez’s exact cause of death. Vazquez had worked for A.O. Hardee for about a year, said Kim Lewis, office manager. She said she could not release any more information because the accident is under investigation. Myrtle Beach police Lt. Chuck Dunn said investigators photographed the scene. Excavation began in September at the site at U.S. 17 Bypass and Harrelson Boulevard. The mall, expected to be the state’s largest, is slated to open in 2004.

One worker dead, another trapped inside trench
LEXINGTON, Ky.- A trench collapse left one worker dead and buried another man in a Lexington subdivision on Tuesday. Lexington firefighters and rescue workers pulled one man out at around 5:17 p.m. EST. The second man, who was killed by the collapse, remained buried in the trench Tuesday night, said Maj. Mike Tracy of the Lexington Fire Department. Authorities were called to the scene around 3:30 p.m., Tracy said. The men’s names hadn’t been released by authorities. The workers had dug a deep ditch and were waterproofing a basement, Tracy said. The trench collapsed as the men were working, he said. The man who was pulled out was transported to the University of Kentucky Medical Center. “He’s doing fine,” Tracy said.

Overhead wires electrocute worker
YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) — A man laying sewer pipe in a new home development was electrocuted when a backhoe, operated by his father, hit a powerline overhead, the Yakima County sheriff’s office said. William Anderson, 26, was pronounced dead Monday at Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital. Chuck Anderson, 63, the owner of Central Concrete and Utilities, was operating the backhoe while his son stabilized a section of pipe that was tethered by cable to the backhoe bucket, the sheriff’s office said. The boom on the backhoe hit a powerline above it and the electrical current was transmitted to the younger Anderson. The state Department of Labor and Industries is investigating.

4,000 homes go dark after crew cuts underground line
UNION-TRIBUN
RANCHO PENASQUITOS – A construction crew accidentally cut an underground power cable last night, plunging some 4,000 area residences into darkness. The crew was digging a trench at Twin Trails Way and Black Mountain Road about 8:35 p.m. when it cut the power line, said Peter Hidalgo, spokesman for San Diego Gas & Electric Co. Hidalgo said power was restored to about 3,100 residential customers within an hour, but the remaining homes would not be back on line until about 4:30 a.m. Recent rains had flooded a manhole where the final repairs needed to be made, so crews first had to pump out the water.

Scary hours for worker trapped in trench
NEWARK – It was a close call for a city worker from Newark. Derrick Gully was trapped in a trench he was working in for nearly two hours Monday afternoon. The 29-year-old city employee was pulled out of a hole about ten feet deep after working on a watermain break. Firefighters say the rain gear Gully was wearing to protect him is what actually trapped him. He was pulled out after nearly two hours on his knees. Gully will spend Monday night in the hospital for observation.

Officials search for fault in Lafayette explosions; Accuracy of marks indicating gas lines investigated; crews check for more leaks.
By John Tuohy November 30, 2002
LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Lafayette officials were investigating Friday whether or not underground gas lines were accurately marked or whether a construction crew failed to heed the markings before rupturing one, causing explosions that destroyed four homes. Four people, including a baby, escaped serious injury. Fire inspectors said the ground was clearly marked with yellow paint, an indication the construction company had informed the gas company it would be digging in that location. But it’s unclear whether the markings were accurate. The construction crew installing a traffic light at 18th and Salem streets struck one of the gas lines while trying to install underground cable. “The marks were there, we know that much,” said Randy Keen, a city fire inspector. “Now we have to find out what went wrong.” The construction crew worked for Hawk Enterprises of Crown Point, which was installing the traffic signal Wednesday. A drill on a digging machine poked a hole into an underground plastic gas line, causing gas to escape and seep up crevices in the ground and into homes. The explosions could have been caused by any of several sparks prevalent in typical households, such as a pilot light on a furnace or water heater. Four people were treated for minor injuries and released from local hospitals, and another 115 were left homeless or forced to evacuate their homes. They have not been allowed to return yet, as crews continue to check the area for more gas leaks. Meanwhile, they will try to restore normalcy to their lives. Amee Smith’s children, William, Graham and Andrew, will return to Vinton Elementary School on Monday. The family rescued four of their five pets, including two dogs and two cats, from their home, the site of the first explosion. A third cat — a 15-year-old calico Persian named Coco — was left behind, though the family left two doors open hoping she’d escape. A ball python, named Ka, who was found among rubble with very cold skin in a smoke-filled aquarium, apparently suffered no injuries or respiratory problems, said Jean Jacobs, who treated the animal at Exotic Animal Clinic. Another resident had returned to his home to claim pets — two cats, two birds and two Rottweilers. Wednesday’s trouble started with a broken gas line — an incident that is common, according to Mike Roeder, a spokesman for Vectren, the company that supplies natural gas to Lafayette. “Unfortunately, gas lines are hit with some frequency,” Roeder said. Explosions, though, remain rare. Construction companies doing work underground are supposed to notify Indiana Underground Plant Protection Systems before digging. That agency then calls the utility company, which dispatches a subcontractor to identify the location of lines and to mark on pavement where the lines run. Vectren uses Reliant Services of Zionsville to locate the gas lines and mark the pavement. Reliant is a joint venture between Cinergy Corp. and Indiana Energy Inc., state records show. Representatives of Reliant could not be reached Friday. Usually, breaches are caused when a construction crew doesn’t call to request that the lines be marked, Roeder said. “It’s just common sense. There is no reason not to call,” said Mary Beth Fisher, a spokeswoman for the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. A representative of Hawk Enterprises could not be reached for comment. The Lafayette Journal and Courier contributed to this report.

Gas leak shuts down Va. 221
By John Barnhart
Natural gas service was disrupted for more than 300 Columbia Gas of Virginia customers in Forest, Thursday, after construction workers accidentally bored into an eight inch gas line near the intersection of Va. 221 and Graves Mill Road. Both the Barr Labs and the Frito Lay plants were affected by the gas outage. According to Bob Sutton, the Virginia Department of Transportation’s (VDOT) resident engineer for Bedford County, the accident occurred shortly before 12: 30 p. m. Construction workers were boring under the Norfolk and Southern railroad right of way for a sewer line connection for a new car wash that is under construction. VDOT helped county authorities by assisting with traffic control and locating a detour route that allowed them to keep Va. 221 traffic flowing. The detour involved routing traffic to the Lynchburg Expressway, then to Timberlake Road, on to Laxton Road and finally to Enterprise Drive. “It made a real convenient detour,” said Sutton. “It couldn’t have happened in a better spot.”   Trffic flow was restored by 4:15 p.m. “There, again, we were fortunate to be able to open up before rush hour,” Sutton commented. Sutton said that multiple contractors are involved in work there and VDOT is conducting an investigation. He said that the railroad is also investigating the incident. Bob Innes, a spokesman for Columbia, said that repairing the line took longer than anticipated. Fixing the leak in the steel line required welding and all residual gas had to be purged from the line before that could be done. After the repair was done, the line had to be “gassed”. This involves restoring gas in the line to normal operating pressure. Once that was done, Columbia employees had to go to each customer and restore gas service. This involved relighting pilot lights, where necessary. “We’re still investigating all circumstances surrounding it,” commented Innes who said that their first priority was to restore gas service. The Forest Volunteer Fire Department was the first Bedford area emergency services unit to respond, according to Jack Jones, Bedford County’s director of fire and rescue. Forest’s Volunteer firefighters made sure the area around the rupture was secure and began evacuating people. Ultimately businesses and residences within a half-mile radius of the rupture were evacuated, including 115 children from a day care center. Jones said that Bedford County Public Schools and Lynchburg City Public Schools provided busses. Bedford County Schools also identified students, who live in the evacuated area, and kept them in school after school let out. Jones said that it took two hours to get gas shut off. The shut-off valve was two miles away and it took Columbia employees a while to find it. It took some time, after that, to get all the residual gas out of two miles of pipeline. Meanwhile, firefighters checked for pockets of gas in the soil. In spite of the delay, Jones feels that everything worked out well. There was good coordination among his department, the Sheriff’s Department, the school division and VDOT. “We know each other, ” Jones commented. Innes reminds people to call Miss Utility at 1-800-552-7001 prior to doing any excavation. This service will locate utility lines, including gas, water, and buried phone lines or power lines at. In addition to the danger involved in digging into a utility line, a contractor, or homeowner, can be liable for expenses. Columbia Gas can recover the expenses that it incurred repairing the line. The accident tied up 18 firefighters and a half-dozen Sheriff’s deputies. Bedford county can recover these costs, as well as what it cost the school division to run extra school busses. VDOT could also send a bill for its expenses. Norfolk and Southern Railroad is also conducting its own investigation and may send somebody a bill. The accident occurred along their right-of-way and prevented any trains from coming through until the area was free of gas. According to Innes, the Virginia Corporation Commission automatically investigates accidents involving utility lines and Columbia will share information from it’s investigation with the Corporation Commission. Innes said that the Commission has the ability to fine, after an investigation. The fine depends on the severity of the accident and how much care the contractor was taking to prevent such a thing from happening.

Gas-line explosion burns 3 workers, Men were trying to repair leak near Rock Hill plaza
NICHOLE MONROE BELL, JENNIFER TALHELM DENNY SEITZ Staff Writers
ROCK HILL – Three York County Natural Gas Authority employees were seriously injured Tuesday when a gas line they were working on exploded near a Rock Hill strip shopping center. The explosion occurred about 11:20 a.m. Tuesday as workers were trying to fix a leaking valve in front of Herlong Plaza, on Herlong Avenue next to the popular PW’s ice cream shop. The burned men were Tim Stegall, Matt Evans and Billy Mullis, according to York County Natural Gas president Willie Stephenson. The men’s ages and hometowns were not available Tuesday evening. They were being treated at the Joseph M. Still Burn Center at Doctors Hospital in Augusta, Ga., where they were in serious but stable condition. No one else was injured in the blast. Stegall, an employee of 20 years, was one of the supervisors working at the site, Stephenson said. He said Evans has worked for the company for about a month and Mullis has worked there as a temporary employee for less than three months. Brenda Brandon, owner of Double “B” Graphics in Herlong Plaza, said she smelled gas about 10 a.m. when she arrived at work. She said she reported the leak to natural gas officials, who came out within the hour to work on the 4-inch line. Rock Hill Fire Chief Mike Blackmon said the workers had been digging near the line with a backhoe and were in the process of sealing off the gas line to replace the faulty valve when something ignited the gas. Stephenson said he thinks one of the company’s work trucks may have inadvertently ignited the gas when it drove by the site. He said one of the injured men — he didn’t know which one — had been driving the truck, while the other two men were standing on the side of the road. Witnesses recalled hearing a big explosion followed by smaller ones: the burning truck’s gas tank and then its tires, they guessed. “I saw one guy turn to run, and he didn’t go two steps before the explosion knocked him right off his feet. His whole body was in the air,” said Linda Horton, who had just gotten out of her car in the shopping center parking lot when the explosion occurred. “When they saw the … flame, they started running, but didn’t have time to get away.” Ronald Hinson of Rock Hill was walking into the Market on Herlong restaurant when he heard the window-rattling explosion and saw the flames. “I saw one guy jump a little, then run. He probably ran 50 yards, but never made a sound,” Hinson said. “You could see that his skin was all burnt. … He was on fire and running. When people got to him, he was acting like he couldn’t catch his breath.” Paramedic supervisor Robert White said bystanders took the injured workers to Piedmont Medical Center, less than a mile away on Herlong. Later Tuesday afternoon, the men were taken by helicopters to the burn unit in Augusta. White said the men were alert and talking while at PMC, but that their injuries were serious. He said he did not know the extent of their injuries, but they appeared to have at least second-degree burns. Flames reached above the burning work truck at the site of the blast. Firefighters waited more than an hour for the gas-fueled flames to subside before extinguishing the blaze. Workers cut gas service to 240 customers, including the strip mall and nearby businesses and homes. Service was expected to be restored by this morning. Stephenson said a cracked valve caused the leak, but he did not know what caused the valve to crack. He said cracked valves are “highly unusual” and he planned to send it to an independent testing lab to determine why it failed. Stephenson said Tuesday’s fire was the first time anything like this has happened in his 28 years with the company. He said the workers were following proper work procedures when the explosion occurred, and that their injuries could have been much worse had they been in the hole where the leak was.

Natural gas leak forces evacuation
By Sandy Wall Staff Writer
A natural gas leak Monday afternoon near downtown Kinston forced the evacuation of several businesses and homes and led police to close several area streets. The incident occurred around 2:15 p.m. when a crew renovating the offices of the Greater Kinston Credit Union on Queen Street struck and cut a natural gas pipe. The workers, who were from the Worthington Company, were digging footings behind the building when a crewman operating an excavator severed the line. “We thought we were by it,” said crew leader Ronnie Stanley. “We jumped right down and called.” Kinston police officers and firefighters evacuated the blocks bordered by Independence and Herritage streets and Park and Vernon avenues and cordoned off the area. Queen Street traffic was diverted to Independence Street and Herritage Street. A repairman from NCNG sealed off the leak a few minutes later. By 2:55 p.m., residents and business workers and patrons were allowed to return. No one was injured in the incident. An estimate of how many people were evacuated was not available. Crews working on the credit union building say plans call for the construction of a second story on it as well as an expansion on the building’s front and rear.

Rescuers free man trapped in trench, Plumbing company employee unhurt; state to check site
By Chris Poynter
The state plans to investigate a trench collapse that left a man trapped but unharmed yesterday in southwestern Jefferson County. The incident began at 11:30 a.m. when James Weekley, an employee of Dauenhauer Plumbing, was digging a ditch for a sewer line in the Pleasant View subdivision, near the Gene Snyder Freeway and Dixie Highway. Part of the trench collapsed, trapping the man up to his knees in dirt. Weekley, 33, was freed two hours later when he helped rescue workers dig himself out. He stepped out of the trench using a ladder and was taken to University Hospital for observation. ”He basically dug his feet out,” said Pleasure Ridge Park Fire Chief Doug Atwell. It appeared that the 10to 12-foot trench was not properly secured, Atwell said, but that would have to be determined by an investigation. Regulations require trenches more than 5 feet deep to be shored or braced, said Eddie Jacobs, a spokesman for the state Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The investigation by his agency could take two to four weeks, Jacobs said. Gary Thieneman, a general manager for Dauenhauer, said the trench was secured and he pointed to part of it that remained intact as proof. That section contained what looked like a step that has been dug into the earth. Chris Gosnell, of the Okolona Fire Department, said ”stair casing” is a method to help secure trenches. In essence, Gosnell said, instead of digging straight into the ground, workers dig a staircase, which helps reinforce the ditch. Gosnell, however, echoed Atwell in saying it did not appear the ditch was properly secured. Thieneman said he wasn’t sure what happened. ”It looks like part of the trench gave way,” he said. ”I’m not sure why.” Dauenhauer was fined $630 in 1989 for failing to properly secure a trench, according to state records. Since 1983, Dauenhauer has been inspected by the state 25 times and has been cited twice, once for the 1989 trench collapse and once for an electrical violation in 1991, Jacobs said.

Residents evacuate after gas line ruptures
SPRING HILL — Twenty-five residents of Wyngate Estates were evacuated from their homes yesterday morning after a piece of heavy machinery ruptured a gas line, officials said. ”It was strictly a precautionary measure,” said Spring Hill Fire Chief Clyde Farmer. ”A 4-inch natural gas line was broken and gas was escaping into the air, so we evacuated all the people downwind from it.” Construction crews were working on a road in the Wyngate Estates subdivision when the accident occurred about 10 a.m., Farmer said. Two fire trucks and five firefighters responded to the accident at 2300 Leighton Lane and remained on the scene for about two hours, Farmer said.

Trench Collapse Nearly Buries Two Men Alive
Coworkers Come To The Rescue
Students working with the charity YouthBuild Detroit received a scare Wednesday after a trench collapsed on two of their workers. Solomon Martin, 19, and Brandon Kelly, 21, were working on a sewer line in a southwest Detroit housing development project, when a large chunk of mud came collapsing off the wall of an 8-foot-deep trench. “I looked up … and all the dirt just came down,” said Martin. Martin said he could still breathe with his head above the dirt, but when he looked over to check on Kelly, he realized the collapse had completely buried his friend, Local 4 reported. Robert Jones of YouthBuild watched as the heavy mud buried the two students below. Jones and others jumped in the trench to dig Kelly out, fearing that he would run out of oxygen, Local 4 reported. “I turned his head out first to let him breathe … then I tried to keep him relaxed,” said Jones. Rescuers used a shovel to dig the boys out and eventually pull them to safety, Local 4 reported. Martin walked away uninjured, but Kelly was rushed to the hospital to be treated for injuries. Kelly is still in the hospital but is expected to recover.

Cross-Sound Power Cable Cut, May cause energy loss next summer
By Michael Rothfeld
A 32-year-old transmission cable that carries power between Long Island and Connecticut was torn Saturday afternoon by a contractor building a natural gas pipeline under the Long Island Sound during a nor’easter, energy company officials said yesterday. The accident spilled a chemical coolant into the water but did not disrupt electrical service because the cable, which runs from Norwalk, Conn., to Northport, was not in use since the demand for energy was low. Divers were trying to ascertain the cable’s condition yesterday. Officials with the Long Island Power Authority and Connecticut Light & Power, who co-own the 280-megawatt line, said that if it cannot be repaired by the peak summer months, it could strain the power supply in both places. “Obviously, it’s a critical component to our reliability, and our ability to import and export power throughout the area,” LIPA Chairman Richard Kessel said yesterday. The cause of the accident was not entirely clear. At about 3:45 p.m. Saturday, a boat subcontracted to the Iroquois Pipeline Operating Company of Shelton, Conn., apparently dragged its anchor across four of the transmission line’s seven spurs about 1.5 miles from Northport, according to various officials. The anchor ruptured at least the exterior of the cables, which rest on the seabed 40 to 50 feet below the surface. The cables leaked dielectric fluid, an insulator and coolant, into the Sound at a rate of about 16 gallons an hour, Kessel said. As of yesterday, about 1,400 gallons had spilled and was dissipating into the water. Bill Fonda, a spokesman for the state Department of Environmental Conservation, said the fluid was not considered a threat to marine life. Fonda said that because the leak occurred under the water, the fluid’s concentration would lessen before it reaches the surface so there is “not going to be a tremendous amount of environmental impacts.” The pipeline under construction by Iroquois would tap off an existing line that brings gas from Canada to Long Island, and extend it to Hunts point in New York City by April. KeySpan Corp., which manages the cable for LIPA, also owns 20 percent of Iroquois. An Iroquois spokeswoman, Anita Flanagan, said the company was investigating the incident. She said she did not know whether or why construction may have been under way during the storm. Flanagan said the cables appeared to have been sliced by a barge operated by an Iroquois subcontractor. But an official with the subcontractor, Horizon Offshore Inc. of Houston, said the boat that ripped the cables was a diving support vessel operated by yet another subcontractor on the project, Cal Dive, also of Houston. No one from Cal Dive was available for comment. Kessel said that, depending on the damage to the transmission cable, it might be more cost-effective to replace it than repair it. LIPA would have only 1,000 megawatts of transmission capacity across the Sound without this cable and a 330-megawatt cable from New Haven to Shoreham that has been kept idle by Connecticut regulators. An order by the federal energy secretary in August declared an emergency and allowed it to be used temporarily. The agency has 4,500 megawatts of generating capacity on Long Island and is working with a developer to build two plants that would add 130 by the summer. Long Islanders’ energy usage reached a record 5,059 megawatts at its peak last summer, Kessel said.

Workers pierce gas line, force Buena Vista Street evacuation
By Susan Abram
BURBANK — Construction workers nicked a 12-inch underground gas line Tuesday, sending natural gas into the air and prompting authorities to divert traffic and evacuate nearby homes and businesses, police said. It took repair crews about three hours to fix the gas line under Buena Vista Street, which was pierced at 11:34 a.m. by workers who were drilling horizontally, authorities said. Employees from businesses along Buena Vista and Burbank Boulevard were told to leave their offices. Residents of two nearby homes also were evacuated. “It was very strong-smelling,” Tricia Mueller, who works in a two-story professional building at 2501 Burbank Blvd., said about the odor that utilities add to natural gas for safety — so a leak can be smelled. Authorities said the leak did not pose any health risks, and homes and businesses did not lose electricity or gas. “One of the fortunate things is that it was a partial break,” said Burbank Fire Marshal Dave Starr. “Another fortunate thing is the good weather, which allowed the gas to just evaporate.” Workmen for a city contractor were installing conduits to connect two traffic signals when the mishap occurred, said city traffic engineer Ken Johnson. “We were very fortunate,” Johnson said. “That could have been potentially dangerous.”

Gas leak brings rail line to standstill
By James Hore and Katy Edwards
THOUSANDS of commuters faced travel chaos after a major gas leak closed the main railway line through East Anglia. The railway station in Colchester had to be evacuated and residents ordered to stay inside with their doors and windows closed after road workers severed the pipeline shortly before 11am yesterday. More than 25 trains were cancelled as part of the main line to London was shut for five hours after it was judged too dangerous to run the electric power to the rails. Buses were laid on to ferry passengers between Ipswich and Marks Tey while engineers from gas company Transco tried to repair the damaged pipe. The railway line was finally reopened at 4pm, but train companies Anglia Railways and First Great Eastern warned there would be knock-on delays to services stretching into the night. Anglia Railways spokesman Peter Meades said questions would have to be asked of Transco as to why the leak took so long to mend. “To paralyse the main line for up to five hours is clearly not acceptable,” he added. The drama began when a digger, carrying out road widening at the North station roundabout in Colchester, broke open the gas pipe at about 10.45am. Workers from Transco, wearing breathing apparatus, were knocked back by the force of the gas coming from the pipe as they tried to assess the damage. While workmen battled to contain the leak, North station was evacuated and hundreds of rail passengers were forced to wait outside. Relief buses were kept at a distance as the roads around the station were closed for safety, causing traffic gridlock, and residents were ordered to stay inside with their doors and windows closed. The mainline from Liverpool Street in London through East Anglia was affected for more than five hours, with replacement bus services laid on, and fire crews from Colchester remained on standby as a precautionary measure. A spokeswoman for Transco said: “There were some contractors working on a road-widening scheme who went through a medium pressure pipeline. The railway and the main road had to be closed in the interests of safety.” The pipeline supplies gas for Colchester and it is thought more than half a tonne of gas escaped before the repairs were completed, although supplies to customers were not expected to be affected. Chris Green, network operations manager for Transco, said the first priority during the incident was to ensure the safety of people. “We reduced the levels escaping as much as possible and attempted a temporary repair until something more permanent could be done,” he added. Transco said it had informed the Health and Safety Executive as a standard procedure. Anglia Railways warned its customers “not to travel unless absolutely necessary” while the disruption to services continued. First Great Eastern rail services were also affected and a spokesman said “delays and cancellations are the order of the day”. n Motorists travelling on one of the region’s main roads also experienced travel chaos yesterday after a lorry jacknifed and its trailer overturned,  damaging safety barriers. The accident happened at about 11.30am on the roundabout at the A12/14 Copdock interchange south of Ipswich. The roundabout was closed until 4pm for the lorry to be recovered and the barriers repaired and traffic was diverted, causing congestion on nearby roads. 

Gas leak prompts home evacuations
CHARLOTTE HARBOR — An electric company installing new utility poles along a residential street Friday morning struck a gas line, prompting the precautionary evacuation of nearby houses. There were no reported injuries, and the narrow steel pipe was repaired quickly, said Chief Dennis R. DiDio of Charlotte County Fire & EMS. The accident occurred on Gardner Drive at about 9:30 a.m. About 30 people were evacuated from their homes. Elderly residents were driven from the area and allowed to return about two hours later. Sand and dirt spewing out of the ground, that’s about all you could see,” company foreman Rick Messner said. The line is three-quarters of an inch wide, about a foot underground and not under much pressure. It carried liquefied petroleum gas, a propane compound used, for example, in gas barbecue grills. “You’ll hear it hissing. It will blow dirt, but it will still make a bad day if it’s lit,” DiDio said. “There’s always a danger when it’s leaking.” The contractor, Pike Electric, had been working at the site since Monday. Greg Gilmore, a Pike worker, said the dig site wasn’t marked to show a gas line. “They are supposed to mark it when there’s something there,” he said. “If there’s a mark, we dig by hand.”

Westport gas line ruptured
Herald News Staff, Herald News Staff November 16, 2002 
WESTPORT — A 50-pound natural gas line was ruptured Tuesday morning, forcing police to divert all traffic into the four-way intersection of Hixbridge and Drift roads. The rupture was reported to police about 8:10 a.m., police said. The police and fire departments both responded to the gas line accident at 992 Drift Road. Apparently, the gas line was ruptured because a contractor working on the home, Dartmouth Stone, had not notified Dig-Safe to identify any buried lines before beginning construction work and had inadvertently hit the gas line. Traffic was stopped in the area for about 45 minutes until New England Gas Co. field workers arrived to clamp the pipe temporarily. Police said neighbors in the proximity of the accident were asked to evacuate their homes until the leak was stopped. 

Gas leak forces evacuation of Clifton Park day care center
DEANNA AMORE, The Saratogian November 16, 2002 
CLIFTON PARK — Students, staff and parents were evacuated Friday morning from Pal’s Early Child Care & Learning Center on Crossing Boulevard when a construction crew working on the building next door struck a gas line. Pal’s Director Denise Barnes said a construction worker came and announced, ”’Uh, we have a gas leak. I called 911.”’ Barnes called for everyone to leave the building. The break occurred just as many parents were dropping off their children for the day. ”It’s a good thing this didn’t happen at the end of the day when there are more kids,” she said. Pal’s and the building under construction share a common wall. The crew struck one of the lines that feeds the building, said Capt. E.J. Doran of the Clifton Park Fire Department. Niagara Mohawk responded immediately, capped the leak and checked the buildings for gas. ”I don’t think the kids were in any danger,” Doran said. Barnes said 36 children and about a dozen teachers and parents were taken to a room at the Clifton Park Halfmoon Emergency Corps building near the child care center. There were no injuries. The all-clear to return to the building was given around 9 a.m. State Police, Saratoga County Sheriff’s officers and the Clifton Park and Jonesville fire departments responded to the scene. Barnes said parents would be notified of the situation when they picked up their children. ”At least nobody was hurt,” she said. 

Gas main leak forces evacuations, Workers installing fence puncture line near Salinas apartments
By Kelly Nix The Californian
Three Salinas apartment buildings were evacuated for an hour Monday and a road was partially closed after fencing workers accidentally hit a gas main. Police and fire officials cordoned off a portion of North Sanborn Road about 2:15 p.m. as white clouds of gas rose from the ground in front of an apartment building. No one was injured. “There was a real strong gas smell,” said Salinas police Sgt. Mike Groves. “We got people out of the buildings just as a precaution.” About 35 people were evacuated from 24 apartments at 618 N. Sanborn Road. North Sanborn Road, between North Madeira Avenue and Oregon Street to East Laurel Drive, was reopened to traffic about 3:15 p.m. and residents were allowed to return to their apartments. Fire officials received the call about 2 p.m., and Pacific Gas & Electric Co. officials arrived to turn off the gas line about 3 p.m., said Salinas fire Capt. Ted Sokotowski. Fence company workers were digging holes to install a fence at the apartment complex when they broke through the gas line, police said. Business owner Tomas Calderon, who owns Calderon Tires and Wheels, 619 N. Sanborn Road, said he wondered why it took so long for PG&E to turn off the gas. “It’s hurting business,” Calderon said. One PG&E truck arrived, but the worker was unable to turn the gas off until another unit arrived from Watsonville. The gas was leaking from a 1-inch pipe that produced about 55 to 65 pounds of pressure, Sokotowski said. 

Water main break leaves 300 without water 
November 12, 2002 By KATE BREX Herald Staff Writer
ANDOVER TWP. — For the second time in two months, Newton’s water supply was shut down due to a water main break. And the water system stayed shut down due to a second break discovered shortly after the first repairs were made, leaving about 300 homes and businesses without water through Monday night. The first break in the town’s primary transmission line occurred Monday at about 1:30 p.m., forcing the town to shut down its water supply to residents in parts of Andover Township and Newton. Contractors building a new entrance to the Andover Township municipal building accidentally hit Newton’s primary water main, said Newton Town Manager Camille Furgiuele. The water main runs from Morris Lake in Sparta, which is Newton’s reservoir, to Newton. Nearly 300 Newton and Andover Township residents, from Limecrest Road in Andover to Woodside Avenue in Newton, were without water, said Furgiuele. Newton’s main waterline runs along Newton/Sparta Road. “Others in town will experience low water pressure,” Furgiuele said. Furgiuele said homes and businesses in Drake Manor, Sparta Avenue, Lincoln Place, Hicks Avenue, Smith, Prospect and Grand Streets were without water. Furgiuele had hoped to have the water line repaired within six to eight hours. Newton Police Sgt. Leo Beshada said the line was repaired by 10 p.m., but the water department crew discovered a second break at the intersection of Woodside and Sparta Avenue as they were returning to Newton. “They are fixing it now,” he said Monday night. The water department had responded to the first emergency call in Andover Township shortly after 1:30 p.m. and shut down the line. “The Newton Water Department was here in a matter of minutes and shut the line down,” said Andover Township Administrator Richard W. Stewart. “It is unfortunate. Certainly, no one intends to break a water main. I deeply regret any inconvenience that it has caused to the residents of Andover and Newton.” Stewart said that repair equipment was on the scene as early as 4:30 p.m., but repairs had to wait until the water was drained from the line. Stewart said the township will investigate what happened and who was responsible for the break in the transmission line. Furgiuele said the state Department of Environmental Protection and the town advise affected residents to boil their water for one minute until further notice. A slew of town workers went door-to-door, hand-delivering notices that advised residents of the water’s unsafe condition Monday night, said Furgiuele. “This is standard procedure for the township,” she said. “When there is a break in the line, you should always boil the water until the town tests say it is once again safe to drink.” In September, construction of a Sparta sewer line caused three joints to rupture in the Newton water transmission line near Glen Road and Main Street in Sparta. The 16-inch water main accident caused Newton to reopen a temporary interconnection with Sparta that had been used to supply Newton with water after the flood of 2000. Roughly three weeks ago, Newton disconnected from Sparta’s temporary line and reopened its main transmission line, said Furgiuele. Both of Newton’s water lines from Morris Lake were ruptured in the flood. 

Backhoe hits line at new care site 
By Lara Bricker
EXETER – A severed natural gas line near Exeter Hospital on Monday morning could have been explosive had it not been for the quick response of the gas company and firefighters. The highly flammable gas – which can be ignited by something as simple as a light switch – did spread in the area and was detected in the Meineke Muffler shop down the road, said Assistant Fire Chief Ken Berkenbush. While the gas-line rupture and leak on the construction site of Exeter Hospital’s new Center for Ambulatory Care resulted in a large-scale emergency response from firefighters in several surrounding towns, the situation was soon brought under control. “The quick action of the construction crew helped mitigate a potentially more serious situation,” Berkenbush said. The line was hit by a backhoe operator working on the construction site at 11:45 a.m. Monday. The crew from Hutter Construction was attempting to rotate the cover of a catch basin – as part of the drainage system work at the site – when the backhoe bucket caught the gas line, said Norman Philbrick, the site superintendent for Hutter. While the crew knew there were gas lines in the area, they thought the lines were deeper in the ground, Philbrick said. “We just didn’t realize it was that shallow,” he said. The 2-inch low-pressure gas line discharged gas into the air and the odor of gas could be detected on Portsmouth Avenue. Northern Utilities Natural Gas and Exeter Fire Department arrived on the scene just before noon. The Exeter Fire Department evacuated the workers inside the building and did not allow any cars to leave the hospital’s parking garage across the street, Berkenbush said. Meineke Muffler also ceased operation until the gas leak was contained, which took about 15 minutes. Officers from the Exeter Police Department stopped traffic at the intersection of Alumni Drive and Portsmouth Avenue, next to Dunkin’ Donuts. They also diverted traffic at the Synergy parking lot. Firefighters concentrated their efforts on determining how far the natural gas had spread. Mutual aid was called as manpower was needed to use gas meters to check for the spread of gas into the surrounding buildings, Berkenbush explained. The windy conditions Monday didn’t help. “Natural gas rises and it travels with the wind,” he said. Firefighters from Stratham, Hampton, Newfields and North Hampton assisted Exeter at the scene. “They checked to make sure there wasn’t a dangerous concentration of gas,” Berkenbush said. “As it reaches levels where it could ignite all it needs is an ignition source. It could be something as simple as a light switch.” Firefighters used meters to check for gas inside the Center for Ambulatory Care, the parking garage, Exeter Hospital, Seacoast Mental Health, Meineke Muffler, Rite Aid and Dunkin’ Donuts. Some natural gas was found inside the Meineke building, Berkenbush said. Crews from Northern Utilities were able to quickly clamp the ends of the gas line to stop its escape into the air. Despite the leak Monday, the construction project has not resulted in any other emergency situations. “It’s a very large project that the hospital is undertaking and this is the first incident I’ve responded to,” Berkenbush said. “They had all their safety measures in place but sometimes accidents do happen.” 

Construction worker escapes catastrophe after being buried alive

by Mindy Fothergill, KUAM News Sunday, November 10, 2002 
A local construction worker was fortunate to walk away from an industrial accident that happened at the Leo Palace resort on Monday morning. Guam Police Department Duty Officer Lieutenant Pete Mendiola says Hagåtña and southern precinct officers responded to a call of a person who was buried alive at a construction site at the Manneggon Hill Golf Resort. When police arrived they found a construction worker inside a sewage piping trench. Police say the man was inside the trench taking measurements when the upper portion of the trench caved in over him. Thanks to the help of his coworkers who noticed the incident, the man was dug out with the help of Guam Fire Department rescue units. The man was taken to the Guam Memorial Hospital for a minor injury to his ankle and was treated and released this afternoon. The incident has prompted the attention of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration who is expected to determine if there were any workplace violations on the worksite. KUAM News spoke with Leo Palace Resort staff who couldn’t say which construction company the man worked for. They could only tell us that Maeda Guam Construction Company, Sumitomo, Korando and other subcontractors are working on the construction of several sports facilities on the Leo Palace grounds. This marks the second industrial accident that’s happened in as many weeks. As reported, OSHA just recently completed their onsite investigation into the death of a 52-year-old Shipyard Repair Facility fork lift operator last weekend. That case too, remains under investigation. 

UPDATE, Kent firm to pay hefty fine for trench collapse
2002-11-09 by Tim Larson Journal Reporter
SAMMAMISH — A sudden trench collapse that trapped a worker below street level for more than two hours has drawn a hefty fine from the state’s Department of Labor and Industries. Citing three violations, two of them “willful,” L&I fined Laser Underground & Earthworks Inc., of Kent, a total of $67,750. “This is a large fine for a small employer,” L&I spokesman Steve Pierce said. “It’s very unusual to issue a citation in excess of $60,000 except for the largest employers.” The April incident, on 208th Avenue Northeast just north of Inglewood Hill Road, drew a huge emergency response. More than 20 firetrucks, ambulances and command vehicles from Eastside Fire & Rescue, Kirkland Fire and Redmond Fire responded. The worker, who was extending a sewer line to a nearby house, was trapped in a standing position after dirt collapsed around his legs and rose to the top of his thighs. Although the trench was 8 feet deep in some places, the worker was not protected by proper shoring. The required ladder was also absent. After more than two hours under street level, the trapped man was taken to Harborview Medical Center. He suffered no significant injuries. Laser Underground and Earthworks Inc. has appealed the fines. Efforts Friday to elicit a comment from the company were unsuccessful. 

Gas Line Bursts Near Downtown, Leak Ties Up Traffic For Morning Commuters
November 8, 2002
HOUSTON — Natural gas spewed into Houston’s sidewalks and streets after a worker ruptured the line, authorities said. The accident happened shortly 4 a.m. near the intersection of Fannin and Webster near downtown. Investigators told News2Houston that the gas line was ruptured when a construction worker, using a boring machine, was drilling horizontally underground. The workers, who were trying to install a Southwestern Bell utility line, said that their plans didn’t indicate that there was a gas line in this location. Police and firefighters blocked off the intersection as a precaution. CenterPoint Energy workers arrived on the scene shortly after 6 a.m. and began to close off the gas line, authorities said. “I just spoke with the gentleman from CenterPoint just a few minutes ago (and) they now have what they call a crimping crew on the scene. They are digging and will have the valve found momentarily,” said Jay Evans, spokesman for the Houston Fire Department. “Once they find the valve, they will cut it off and then the danger will be completely eliminated,” he said. The leak tied up traffic for morning commuters, because of the blocking off of Fannin, which is a major street in and out of the downtown area. The intersection was reopened at 8 a.m. The accident is under investigation. 

WORKER KILLED 
A 22-year-old man died in a trench cave-in Wednesday afternoon in Tooele County. Eric Bevan was helping some friends install a septic tank in the back yard of a home at 1022 N. Ericson Road in Pine Canyon. He was left alone to operate the backhoe at 2 p.m. and was found trapped at 2:40 p.m. Firefighters do not know how long he was buried in the cave-in. He was covered with dirt up to his neck, but the extreme pressure on his chest stopped him from drawing in any air. Rescue workers could not revive him and he died at the scene. Bevan was recently married and his wife is expecting their first child. 

Gas line break destroys Golden home
By Jim Erickson, Rocky Mountain News November 6, 2002
An unoccupied Golden home exploded and burned to the ground Tuesday after construction workers digging a trench in front of the house ruptured a natural gas pipe, police said. No one was hurt, but more than 20 people in the neighborhood were evacuated as a precaution. Most were allowed to return home about 2 ½ hours after the 10:20 a.m. explosion, said Julie Brooks, a spokeswoman for the Golden Police Department. “It was a huge bang that rocked the house,” said Jack Stell, who lives two houses down from the site at 570 Chelan St. “I thought something big had hit my roof, like something had fallen off an airplane,” Stell said. John Kyler, who lives about 150 yards away, dialed 911 when he heard the explosion, then went outside to see what was happening. “Within two to four minutes the house was fully involved in fire, from one end to the other,” Kyler said. “It went real fast. Real fast.” The destroyed home is owned by Eric and Rosemary Green. The Jefferson County Assessor valued the three-bedroom split level, which was built in 1988, at $193,800 last year. The house directly to the east, 560 Chelan St., sustained at least $100,000 in damages, said Kevin Milan, a division chief with the Golden Volunteer Fire Department. That house also was unoccupied. “When we arrived, this house was fully involved – two solid floors of fire – and heavy fire on the west side of the next-door house,” he said. “There was nothing to save (at 570 Chelan), so we concentrated on the neighbor’s house,” he said. “In another two or three minutes, it would have been in the same condition as the other one.” Firefighters from the West Metro and Pleasant View fire departments helped battle the blaze. Workers under contract with Qwest were digging a trench in front of the two homes when the gas line was severed – 10 to 15 minutes before the explosion occurred, according to Brooks. The workers are employed by Orius Corp., a nationwide company based in West Palm Beach, Fla., said Rebecca Tennille, director of media relations for Qwest. They were installing a new phone line at 560 Chelan, said Kim Thomas, executive director of corporate communications at Orius. Qwest and Orius are trying to determine if the workers checked on the location of utility lines before they start digging, as required by Colorado law. “That is obviously an important part of the investigation, but I don’t have information on that at this time,” Thomas said. A crew from Xcel Energy was on its way to turn off gas lines when the explosion occurred, said company spokesman Steve Roalstad. “We received a call shortly after 10 a.m.,” he said. “We were responding to it, but this one just happened so quickly that we couldn’t get there in time.” In most cases, gas from lines ruptured in construction accidents dissipates harmlessly into the air, Roalstad said. Occasionally, natural gas can follow underground utility lines into a house, he said. “It probably got in there and found its way to a pilot light – possibly,” Milan said. 

Construction Worker Dies in Explosives Blast 
Vanguard (Lagos) NEWS November 7, 2002 By Emmanuel Aziken
AN employee of a construction firm, Mr. Vincent Pam, was on Tuesday night in Mzaram Topp village, Plateau State, blown to death by explosives he was using to dig a well. Narrating the incident the Plateau Police Command s Public Relations Officer, Mr. Emmanuel Adams, said the incident occurred at about 7.30 p.m. He said the deceased, while digging the well met a rock which necessitated the use of the explosives. Adams explained that several minutes after Pam placed the explosives inside the well, they did not detonate, which made him to go inside to find out that went wrong. The police spokesman stated that when the deceased entered the well, the explosives went off, killing him instantly and injuring his project consultant, Mr. John Oche, and four other persons. He said the sound of the explosion created panic within the Rayfield area of Jos, which is near the village. Adams said the Police Commissioner, Mr. Innocent Ilozuoke, quickly dispatched some policemen to the area, who came back with a report on the incident.

Three streets, condominium complex evacuated for gas
Reid Williams
SUMMIT COVE – A late-season excavation job – part of Summit Cove drainage improvements to prevent flooded homes next spring -forced firefighters to evacuate the same homes Tuesday when the contractor ruptured a gas line. Fire officials are questioning the quickness of the response and directions the department received from cel Energy. According to cel spokesman Mark Stutz, excavators from Stan Miller cut a 6-inch, intermediate-pressure natural gas line at 9:54 a.m. in the area of Key West Farms. The line serves about 3,000 customers in Summit Cove, Keystone and Arapahoe Basin. The contractors notified cel’s gas division. cel representatives notified dispatchers at Summit County Communications, who in turn notified the Snake River Fire Protection District. “We certainly have some concerns about how this was dispatched,” Snake River Fire Chief Dave Parmley said of the department’s notification at 11 a.m. “At the time, cel said we didn’t need to respond. Not too long after we got there, we determined the area needed to be evacuated.” The leak, which released an unknown amount of natural gas, drew the response of Lake Dillon firefighters, the Summit County Sheriff’s Office and Summit County Ambulance. Emergency responders reported there were no injuries, but the Dillon Mountain Branch of American Red Cross set up a temporary shelter for evacuated families at Summit Cove Elementary. Stutz said crews hoped to have the line fixed and families headed home by 10 p.m. Stutz said the company’s 60-minute response was not unusual. State law requires utility companies to respond to gas leaks within four hours, he said. “I’m not sure what (the county’s) notification procedures are, but if we erred, our apologies,” Stutz said. “We’ll look at it.” cel shut off the gas meters at the approximately 25 evacuated homes on Tallyho Court, Giel Lane and Wagner Way, as well as Chateau Acadian condominiums. The residents in the area are no strangers to neighborhood-threatening crises. The past three summers, homeowners have dealt with flooding after significant rainfall. Some homeowners blamed the construction of Keystone’s River Golf Course and consequent alteration of drainage in the area for causing the flooding and damaging their homes. Engineering studies commissioned by the county exonerated Keystone’s development, but residents weren’t satisfied. Many questioned the hydrological studies. In the end, county government and Keystone agreed to share the cost of drainage projects aimed at preventing future floods. “This has been a longstanding problem, so we were anxious to get it solved, anxious to get the project in the ground this fall,” said Summit County Manager Ron Holliday. “We don’t want to go through flooding in the melt cycle next February or March, so we were pushing it late.” The normal deadline for earth-disturbing excavation projects set by the county is Oct. 31. Of three sections in the drainage project, county workers completed one this summer. Holliday said he didn’t know if the gas leak would keep the project from being completed this winter. Holliday said he didn’t know if the county’s rush had influenced the contractor; he hadn’t spoken with a Stan Miller representative as of 5 p.m. Stan Miller managers could not be reached for comment. Other officials on the scene said “locates” – stake-planting and line-painting to identify utility placements – were done before digging started, but it was not clear Tuesday afternoon if they were accurate. 

Gas leak halts Hudson traffic
By ANNE LUNDREGAN, Telegraph Staff 
HUDSON – A Derry Lane resident installing a granite post by his mailbox Wednesday afternoon got a little more than he bargained for. While using a backhoe to dig a hole by the mailbox, Gerard Bowes accidentally struck a gas line. Police and fire were called to the scene around 1:14 p.m. Route 102 was shut down briefly and Derry Lane was kept closed to traffic for about an hour. The 2-inch gas line is about 3 feet underground. The homeowner called 911 after hitting the pipe, Fire Prevention Officer Steve Dube said. Dube said Bowes was trying to place a granite post in the ground near his mailbox. Bowes declined to comment. KeySpan Corp., the natural gas distributor, was contacted immediately and shut off a portion of the pipe. This required digging a hole to access a different part of the pipe near the home. Firefighters connected a hose to a nearby hydrant and sprayed water in the area near the break to prevent the gas vapors from dispersing, Dube said. By breaking up the gas with the water, the firefighters diluted the concentration of the gas, which helps prevent a possible explosion, he said. About 10 fire vehicles and 20 firefighters responded to the scene. At the time, firefighters were discussing an emergency drill that took place earlier that day. The area was not evacuated but emergency personnel tried contacting homeowners in the area to tell them what was happening. Many area residents were not home at the time of the leak, Dube said. 

Gas line break forces evacuations 
By Dan Gravel October 30, 2002
Stores were closed and buildings were evacuated on a portion of Ocean Street last week after a gas line was ruptured by sewer project workers. Workers were removing a large boulder from the road at the intersection of Ocean and Webster streets in front of CVS on Wednesday when asphalt fell onto the gas pipe where the business connection meets the main line, causing the leak, according to Acting Deputy Fire Chief Jack Beagle. The leak began at 4 p.m. and was stopped four hours later. Firefighters and police officers secured and closed all businesses south of the leak. The Ventress library was also closed and evacuated, as well as the recreation department’s after school daycare program. About 20 students from the program were evacuated to the police station. Bay State Gas personnel closed off valves near the leak and waited for enough gas to escape before beginning repairs. Beagle did not fault the contractor, Fed Corp., for the ruptured gas line. This was the second time a gas leak has occurred since sewer construction began in the spring. The sewer project, approved at the April 2000 Town Meeting, will extend the sewer system from Old Colony Lane to the downtown, adding 8.7 miles of pipe to the sewer system that will serve about 600 homes and businesses. Since work began on Ocean Street many businesses have suffered because of detours that move traffic off of Route 139. Keith Whitaker, owner of Marshfield Liquors, said his store has seen a significant drop in customers in recent weeks and said last week’s gas leak didn’t improve the situation. “We were already getting killed because of the detour,” he said. “This didn’t help.” Whitaker added when his store closed at 10 p.m. work crews were still on the street. Construction on Ocean Street will stop on Nov. 22 and will resume in March when the weather improves. 

Worker Trapped in Cave-in
A cave-in trapped an area worker today. It happened earlier today on Wynn Road between Navarre and Pickle. Police say crews were doing work on a sewer line. The worker was in a trench when it collapsed, burying him neck deep. The victim was airlifted to Toledo Hospital where right now he is in good condition.

Cave-in traps man in trench, Homeowner hears calls for help from worker 
By DAVID JESSE Staff writer 
Mike Phillips could wiggle his arms, move his head a little and open his mouth enough to shout for help, but that was all. It turned out to be enough to get help to get him out of 5 feet of dirt outside a Holland home. For 15 minutes, he hollered and tried to get himself out of the 8-foot hole. His arms were pinned, so he tried using his chin to make a little room, but he wasn’t getting anywhere fast. Then the homeowner, Burton Wentzel, heard his shouting and called 911. Holland firefighters rushed to the scene at 632 Central Ave. around 1 p.m., grabbing anything they could use to move dirt out of the way. “We were digging him out, using a variety of tools — hands, shovels,” Capt. Tom Scholten said. A Holland Board of Public Works truck that’s normally used to clean out sewers was in the neighborhood and showed up to help. The truck rolled over a lawn to get to the hole, and lowered a large hose to suck out the dirt more quickly than it could be dug out by the firefighters. Nine minutes later, Phillips was up and out of the hole, accompanied by a smattering of applause from the small crowd that gathered to watch. After being checked out by paramedics, Phillips drove himself to the hospital to be checked out, but said he felt fine. Phillips was at the house on Central Avenue to take care some of roots in a sewer, working for a company named Rapid Rooter. “I was just digging a hole, turned around to get out and it came down around me,” he said. Phillips dug his initial hole in the front yard of the house and missed the sewer, so tried tunneling over to where it was. “It just rumbled. It was kind of a slow process,” he said, his shoulders wrapped in a blanket to keep warm in a slight sprinkle. Phillips has had minor cave-ins before, but nothing deeper than around his ankles, he said. “This was a very unusual call for us,” Scholten said. “We called for the Southwest Ottawa County Technical Rescue team — people trained in trench rescues — but by the time they got here, he was out.” 

Santana Row Gas Leak, Second In Week
Oct. 25 (BCN) — Workers at the Santana Row retail and residential complex in West San Jose are back to work after a gas leak prompted evacuations at the development. Construction workers were evacuated this morning after a gas leak was reported, according to San Jose Police spokesman Sgt. Steve Dixon. San Jose Fire spokesman Greg Spence said a construction worker operating a backhoe accidentally cut into a four-inch gas line at about 8:30 a.m. Construction crews were able to find the valve for the line and turn off the gas quickly before the situation became dangerous, Spence said. Workers were allowed back in once the gas was turned off as early as 9:30 a.m. for some. This is the second gas leak at the construction site this week. A similar situation occurred Saturday, Spence said, when another worker accidentally cut into a three-inch gas line. That incident took much longer to remedy because crews could not find the valve to turn off the gas and fire officials had to wait for Pacific Gas & Electric staff to arrive. Because the incident took place on a weekend, it took three hours before PG&E got there to turn off the gas, Spence explained. Santana Row last made news in August when an 11-alarm fire destroyed several residential and retail units. The cause of the blaze is still under investigation. The complex was initially scheduled to open on Sept. 19, but because of the fire, the date was pushed back to Nov. 7. Today’s incident is not expected to create any more delays. Fire crews were on scene this morning for less than an hour before allowing the workers to return to work at about 9:25 a.m. 

Workers Get Sick at Former Clean-up Site
A six million dollar water main project is put on hold after workers uncover a contaminated work site. The area was supposedly cleaned up by the Environmental Protection Agency more than four years ago, but four workers at the site got sick last week. It happened at the Tar Lake clean-up site just south of Mancelona. The EPA began a ten million dollar clean-up of the site in October 1998. According to the EPA, the 200 acre site was a dumping ground for a charcoal manufacturing company in the early 1900’s. Contamination of the ground water at the site led to a water main project to ensure clean drinking water for the Mancelona area. Officials from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality believe the four workers who fell ill hit an isolated pocket of contamination on the former site of the Antrim Iron Works plant. Representatives from the MI DEQ, EPA, and construction companies met Thursday and say the site will be cleaned up and the water main project will continue. Only 500 feet of the water main remains to be laid and it’s expected to be complete in the next couple of weeks. One of the workers 7&4 News spoke with is still having trouble breathing but the flu like symptoms are gone. It’s unsure if the exposure will continue to affect their health.