OSHA Inspection: AICHHOLZ EXCAVATION CORP.

Issued

Oct 6, 2023

Abate by

Oct 27, 2023

Penalty

Initial $4,688 · Current $2,500 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1926.651(j)(2): Protection was not provided by placing and keeping excavated or other materials or equipment at least 2 feet (0.61m) from the edge of excavations, or by the use of retaining devices that were sufficient to prevent materials or equipment from falling or rolling into excavations, or by a combination of both if necessary:   (a) On or before 9/21/23, the employer did not ensure that the spoils pile was at least two feet from the edge of the trench. This condition exposed employees to falling object, struck-by, and trench cave-in hazards.

Issued

Oct 6, 2023

Abate by

Oct 27, 2023

Penalty

Initial $4,688 · Current $2,500 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1926.651(k)(1): Daily inspections of excavations, the adjacent areas, and protective systems were not made by a competent person for evidence of a situation that could have resulted in possible cave-ins, indications of failure of protective systems, hazardous atmospheres, or other hazardous conditions:   (a) On or before 9/21/23, the employer did not ensure that a competent person inspected the trench at least daily or as conditions of the trench changed. The trench was ten feet deep at its deepest and seven feet at its shallowest and was fourteen feet across. The soil was comprised mainly of large and medium cobbles. The trench was dug the day before the inspection in recently disturbed soil and was located adjacent to a road. The foreman had not inspected the trench and was not competent. This condition exposed employees to trench collapse hazards.

Issued

Oct 6, 2023

Abate by

Oct 27, 2023

Penalty

Initial $4,688 · Current $3,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1926.652(a)(1): Each employee in an excavation was not protected from cave-ins by an adequate protective system designed in accordance with 29 CFR 1926.652 (b) or (c):  (a) On or before 9/21/23, the employer did not protect employees from trench collapse hazards in that a laborer was repairing a leaking water curb stop in a ten-foot deep, fourteen-foot-wide trench that was in recently excavated soil and located next to a road. The soil was mainly composed of large and medium cobbles. The trench had been open since the day before and no trench protection was provided. The walls of the trench were nearly vertical. These conditions exposed employees to trench collapse hazards.