OSHA Inspection: WOOFTER CONSTRUCTION & IRRIGATION INC

Issued

2025-01-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2025-02-20 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $11585.00 · Current $9268.00 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1926.21(b)(2): The employer did not instruct each employee in the recognition and avoidance of unsafe conditions and the regulations applicable to his/her environment to control or eliminate any hazards or other exposure to illness or injury:  At the jobsite located at W. Willow Avenue and Sewell Avenue, in Colby, Kansas, on December 3, 2024, employee(s) engaged in trenching and excavation activities were exposed to cave in and engulfment hazards in that the employer did not provide training or instructions to employee(s) regarding the recognition and avoidance of unsafe conditions such as cave ins and engulfment.

Issued

2025-01-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2025-02-20 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $11585.00 · Current $9268.00 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1926.652(d)(2): Manufactured materials and equipment used for protective systems were not used and maintained in a manner that would have prevented employee exposure to hazards:  At the jobsite located at W. Willow Avenue and Sewell Avenue, in Colby, Kansas, employee(s) engaged in trenching and excavation activities were exposed to cave in and engulfment hazards. The protective system present inside a trench did not extend along the entirety of the trench or extend above the edges of the trench which did not protect employee(s) exposed to those hazards.

Issued

2025-01-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2025-02-20 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $11585.00 · Current $9268.00 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1926.652(g)(1)(iii): Employees were not protected from the hazard of cave-ins when entering or exiting the area protected by shields:  At the jobsite located at W. Willow Avenue and Sewell Avenue, in Colby, Kansas, employee(s) engaged in trenching and excavation activities were exposed to cave in and engulfment hazards on December 3, 2024, when employee(s) were working inside a trench that was approximately 9 feet in depth. The employee(s) had a protective system, but the protective system did not extend above the edge of the trench and did not protect the entire length of the trench the employee(s) were working in. The employee(s) exited the protective system into the corner of the south end of the trench to lay pipe and tie in a main sewer line when a cave in occurred resulting in injury requiring hospitalization.

Issued

2025-01-24 00:00:00

Abate by

2025-02-20 00:00:00

Penalty

Initial $8276.00 · Current $0.00 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR 1904.39(a)(2): The employer did not report within 24-hours a work-related incident resulting in in-patient hospitalization, amputation or the loss of an eye.  On December 3, 2024, an employee working at Woofter Construction & Irrigation, Inc sustained injuries to their body while working inside a trench after being involved in a cave in and an engulfment. The employer did not report the work-related incident that resulted in an inpatient hospitalization to OSHA within 24 hours.