Cal/OSHA cites construction company over fatal trench collapse

The California Occupational Safety and Health Administration said Thursday it fined a construction company $371,100 following a worker’s death in a trench collapse at a San Francisco job site in September 2023.

Cal/OSHA cited San Francisco-based D’Arcy & Harty Construction Inc. for eight “willful” and “serious” safety violations. It said the company failed to provide a protective system for employees working in the trench and failed to provide a means of escape in the event of a collapse.

During an earlier work site inspection, an investigator informed D’Arcy & Harty that the trench excavation didn’t have adequate shoring and means for employee escape in the event of a collapse, but the company didn’t abate the hazards, Cal/OSHA said.

The worker, who was replacing sewer parts inside the eight-foot-deep trench, was buried in the collapse.