[ad_1]
Two Texas workers are presumed dead after a trench they’d been digging to a sewer line collapsed and buried them more than 24 feet underground.
The pair were on the construction site of a new home in the city of Jarrell, located about 40 miles north of Austin, when it caved in, according to city spokesman Nick Spinetto. Crews for hours tried to locate the missing workers, but to no avail.
Several agencies including Austin, Georgetown and Roundrock fire departments have lent their assistance in the search efforts, KXXV reported. Excavating equipment was also brought in, but work to reinforce the delicate trench continued into Tuesday in bid to prevent further collapses.
“It’s a really involved process for the safety of our rescuers, for the safety of our emergency personnel,” Spinetto said. “They have to remove certain dirt and almost make steps to make sure the crews can get down there without causing any more dirt to collapse.”
Spinetto added that recovery efforts were slated to continue Wednesday afternoon.
“We want to make sure it’s safe for our emergency personnel to get down there,” he said.
The names of the dead workers have not yet been released and the cause of the trench collapse remained unknown.
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration was to investigate.
With News Wire Services
[ad_2]
