U.S. Department of Labor issued the following announcement on Nov. 22.
The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Blue Nile Contractors Inc. – based in Birmingham, Missouri – for failing to protect employees from trench collapse and electrical hazards. The company faces $210,037 in penalties.
OSHA inspectors observed workers exposed to trenching and excavation hazards while installing water lines at a Kansas City, Missouri, jobsite in May 2019. OSHA cited the company for four repeat and five serious safety violations of trenching and electrical hazards, and placed the company in the Agency's Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
"Trench collapses can be quick and cause serious or fatal injuries, but they are preventable," said OSHA Kansas City Area Director Karena Lorek. "Employers must ensure that there is a safe way to enter and exit a trench, cave-in protection is used, all materials are placed away from the trench's edge, standing water and other hazards are addressed, and no one enters a trench before it has been properly inspected."
Original source can be found here.