Serious or fatal construction accidents involving workers buried in trenches are a common occurrence in the United States. In a recent example, 38-year-old Jason Olsen was in critical condition on March 25 after a trench caved in near a house foundation, according to report by the Eyewitness News team from local ABC affiliate KLKN Channel 8 ("UPDATE: Trench collapse victim condition upgraded," by Cole Miller). Olsen was trapped up to his chest, and going in and out of consciousness, as firefighters equipped with a vacuum excavator worked to free him from the trench, the station reported. "I heard him talking as he came out of the hole," fire battalion chief Eric Jones told reporters.
An unidentified Corpus Christi construction worker was less fortunate, reports local station KRIS Channel 6 ("Worker Buried in Trench Collapse on King George Place"). "Fire officials say a crew was working inside the 8 foot deep trench to uncover a utility line in the subdivision" when the trench caved in, the station reports. One worker was taken to the hospital with a leg injury, the station reports; a second worker lost consciousness and died before firefighters could extricate him.
