[DB]

The company should be severely punished BUT the worker is also responsible. It is your life to protect. Doing something you know is dangerous with unnecessary risk is your fault. At least that's my opinion...

[Peace will be here soon]

The company should be severely punished BUT the worker is also responsible. It is your life to protect. Doing something you know is dangerous with unnecessary risk is your fault. At least that's my opinion...

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I will second that.

[B4Ranch]

"The job was assigned to John F. Kehrer, 49, an experienced backhoe operator."(snip)" Mr. Kehrer insisted in his deposition that he was not competent to assess the hazards. Yes, he had taken a 10-hour trench safety class with a prior employer. But he also said that he had forgotten most of what he learned, and had received no safety training in six years at Moeves Plumbing. "

Straight out of the trench,"Bullshit!" Every backhoe operator in the world with 8 hours experience is worried about the trench walls collapsing and the 'hoe falling into the trench. This is the reason why wood and other materials are used to widen the footpad area. This spreads the weight stress out further. I have seen trenches collapse because the pads weren't widened enough and when the walls collapsed one leg and wheel were buried.

The operator would know just from the 'feel' of the earth being removed whether it was too wet/sloppy to have a man down in the unprotected trench.

The idiot down in the trench should have known but like any other kid, he was relying on the operators experience to protect him.

He had probably seen the operator ask for braces using the excuse, "It'll collapse and we'll lose our tools or screw up the new pipe joint being installed". It's not cool to whine about a man's safety on the job. You go to an ignorant boss and explain the "costs/loss in time" if the walls collapse.

I would go after the owner and the operator. Why? Because they are the ones who know the laws and the hazards.

If any of you don't have an idea what I'm talking about, the next time you see a mobile crane working just look at the different materials used under the footpads to keep the crane sturdy. 12" X 12" X 16' are very common timbers used for 50 ton cranes. It will crush thick asphalt, break thin concrete sidewalks and crush the pipes underground if the footpad stress isn't spread out. (Yes, I'm experienced in that work)

Caution: Anytime you see a crane operating with the boom at a high angle, know that he is working heavy loads and stay twice the length of the boom away from the work site.

[tiki]

My son does this kind of work and though he usually runs the machinery he does get into the trenches often. He is a foreman and takes safety quite seriously.

Once, on another man's job , he was sent by the boss to check. He told the backhoe operator that the ditch was unacceptable and told the laborer not to get in the ditch. They were standing around arguing when one side of the ditch collapsed and the laborer fell in. My son freaked because the other side could give any minute and my son yelled at the man to jump out of the ditch but he couldn't move so he jumped in the ditch, picked him up and threw him out. What was so funny is that my son only weighs 125 lbs and the man in the ditch was much larger but he had so much adrenaline that he was able to pick him up and toss him into the air. Everyone was all right but my son was PO'd and went to find the backhoe operator who was nowhere in sight because he was going to kick his a$$. He didn't because the man was puking his guts out so he just gave him the what-for verbally.

This happened in his first month on the job and he's never forgotten it and it was the boss' son who was operating the machinery and I don't think he's forgotten it either.

[bert]

.....BUT the worker is also responsible......

There is a tendency among construction workers in small firms to ignore many safety rules. They aren't stringently enforced by supervisors who have too much to do and aren't required to be knowlegable either.

Safety meetings, so called Tool Box Sessions don't exist.

There are trenches and there are trenches. Some routinely work in unshored ditches and are unharmed...... leading to a belief that the regulations are un needed.

[Mad Dawgg]

"The company should be severely punished BUT the worker is also responsible. It is your life to protect. Doing something you know is dangerous with unnecessary risk is your fault. At least that's my opinion...'

Yep, nail the company, they broke the regulations.

However the worker made a choice and it cost him his life. It is very sad.

I've been in situations on construction sites where things were definitely dangerous and have pulled myself and anyone working with me out. Yep we lost money, in fact a couple of times we lost the job totally. But, we never lost a life.