Sewer Worker Killed in Trench Collapse

Victim, 21, jumped into unshored 12-foot pit to retrieve shovel.

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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the death of a Pennsylvania sewer worker who was killed when a 12-foot-deep trench collapsed on him Sept. 28.

The victim, Jacob Casher, reportedly jumped into the trench shortly after 2 p.m. to retrieve a shovel the four-man crew had left behind, according to the Butler Eagle.

“(The workers) jumped in and tried to get him uncovered,” Penn Township police officer Jack Ripper told the newspaper. “I got there and they were still in the hole trying to get him out. I told them to get out for their own safety.”

The crew had managed to clear away enough soil to expose Casher’s head and chest but could not get him out. Members of the Southern Butler County Technical Rescue Team, which specializes in trench rescue, arrived at the scene shortly thereafter.

Crews had to go bucket by bucket to remove the dirt to get to the body, WTAE-TV reported.

“The excavation company was working in a deep-well trench that was not shored,” said Patrick Moore, an official with the Southern Butler County Technical Rescue Team. “After we were able to successfully shore the trench, we were able to measure that the victim’s feet were at 11 feet 1 inch.”

Butler County Deputy Coroner John Hanovick pronounced Casher dead at approximately 6 p.m. when the rescue team finally recovered the body.

The victim had just celebrated his 21st birthday.

Source: Butler Eagle, WTAE-TV



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