Two contractors in North Florida have received $363,436 in fines and citations from OSHA for putting workers in danger during excavation.
A recent report states that inspectors saw Masci General Contractor Inc. employees building a sewer line in a 40-foot trench in Daytona Beach that was 6-foot deep and devoid of the necessary cave-in precautions, such as trench boxes or shoring, on May 28, 2024. Days later, in Jacksonville, OSHA discovered employees of KT Carter Contracting Inc. working in a hazardous 12-foot-deep trench. Inspectors swiftly took employees out of the dangerous situations in both situations.
KT Carter faces $146,803 in recommended fines for willful and significant violations, while Masci General Contractor faces $216,633. Both businesses received citations for placing spoil piles dangerously close to the trench edges and for neglecting to put safety precautions in place, such as cave-in protection and secure entry and exit ports.
“Exposing workers to unprotected trenches puts their lives at serious risk,” OSHA Area Director Scott Tisdale in Jacksonville said in a statement. “In a matter of seconds, a trench wall can collapse, burying workers under tons of soil, leading to life-altering injuries, incidents that are completely preventable with the right safety measures in place. In these cases, we are fortunate that our inspectors were able to intervene before a tragedy occurred, rather than responding to one afterward.”
The contractors have 15 business days to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA or contest the findings before an independent review commission.
