RENTON, Wash. — The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) is investigating what led to a worker being killed when a trench collapsed near 38th and Lincoln in Renton on Wednesday.
Fire crews said dry soil was more susceptible to sloughing off and caving in. Though there was a trench box on site, not all areas were protected.
L&I said its investigation will take time.
"We look at a number of different things, from the type of soil they were working in, what protections they had in place, whether those were up to the requirements that we have for trenching worksites, and all of that type of thing. So, it can take some time to get those done, anywhere from a few months to six months," public affairs manager Matt Ross said. "Especially in a fatality inspection where a worker death is involved, we really want to make sure we take our time and are getting that right."
It comes around two months after two workers were killed in a trench collapse at a Shoreline home while fixing a fractured sewer line when a topside dirt pile caved in.
Both incidents were part of a nationwide trend. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration says in the first six months of 2022, 22 workers died in trenching and excavation work -- compared with 15 in all of 2021. The agency said it would ramp up enforcement in response.
Earlier this year, a Washington construction company's owner was sentenced to jail for the death of one of his workers who died when a trench collapsed at a site in West Seattle in 2016. In that case, an L&I investigation found the company "knowingly ignored basic, common-sense safety rules."
"We do have oversight into construction sites where trenching is happening," Ross said. "We have a very specific set of rules in place that cover what requirements companies need to have when they're doing any sort of trenching work."
L&I conducts pop-up inspections across the state on all types of work sites, including those where trenching is happening. It also responds to complaints by workers and witnesses.
"To keep Washington safe and working. It's our goal that every worker should go home safe at the end of the day and your life shouldn't be at risk just to earn a paycheck," Ross said. "It's terrible to see another tragedy like this so soon after the last one, just a couple months ago where two workers died in Shoreline, and on the heels of a national focus to limit these deaths that are happening in trenches."