OSHA Cites Excavation Company

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited David H. Martin Excavating Inc. in Chambersburg for alleged trenching hazards found on a highway worksite in Roxbury, Pa. Proposed penalties total $63,000.

OSHA initiated an inspection after being notified that workers installing water main piping were being exposed to a cave-in while working in an unprotected trench. As a result of the inspection, the company was cited for one willful violation with a $63,000 penalty.A willful violation is one committed with intentional knowing or voluntary disregard for the law's requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health.

"When sudden cave-ins occur, unprotected trenches can become death traps," said Kevin Kilp, director of OSHA's Harrisburg Area Office in Pennsylvania. "The company bypassed necessary safeguards, leaving its workers at risk of serious injury and possible death."

OSHA standards mandate that all excavations 5 feet or deeper be protected against collapse. Detailed information on trenching and excavation hazards is available on OSHA's website here.

David H. Martin Excavating Inc. has 15 business days from receipt of its citations to comply, meet with the OSHA area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

This inspection was conducted by OSHA's Harrisburg Area Office; telephone 717-782-3902. To report workplace accidents, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, call OSHA's toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742).