News Brief
OSHA, North Texas National Utility Contractors Assoc. to co-host event on trench, excavation safety amid alarming rise in workplace fatalities
WHO: Occupational Safety and Health Administration
North Texas National Utility Contractors Assoc.
WHAT: Trench training event
7 a.m. to noon CDT
WHERE: Bob Jones Park
3901 North White Chapel Blvd.
Southlake, TX 76092
BACKGROUND: OSHA and NUCA North Texas – an OSHA strategic alliance partner since 2015 – will co-host a training event focused on trench and excavation safety amid a troubling increase in trenching fatalities in Texas, and around the nation. Since early 2021, nine trenching-related fatalities have been reported in Texas, and in just the first six months of 2022, 22 U.S. workers have died in trenching and excavation-related incidents.
To raise awareness and understanding of the potential lethal hazards present in the trenching and excavation industry, the event will provide training, discussions and demonstrations focused on recognizing and addressing hazards, and on employer and worker rights during an OSHA investigation.
The event will include more than 500 participants, including 118 students from the Keller Center for Advanced Learning in Keller, Texas. Area firefighters will demonstrate trench rescue and recovery, and NUCA representatives will show an example of a confined space entry. An illustration of how to safely bench and slope a trench will also be offered.
Safety experts estimate that one cubic yard of soil can weigh more than 3,000 pounds, making it difficult, if not impossible, to escape or survive a trench collapse.
