Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
Stemilt cited for man being buried
Jose Antonio Vera Alvarez was hospitalized last fall after an irrigation trench collapsed and buried him at an Othello-area site.
A photograph shows the irrigation pipe being repaired by Stemilt Ag Services before it collapsed on Sept. 21, 2023.
OTHELLO - A Wenatchee-based company is facing $353,000 in fines for safety violations that led to a worker being buried alive Sept. 21, 2023, when trench walls collapsed and buried him.
Jose Antonio Vera Alvarez was injured in a trench cave in while working for Stemilt Ag Servicees, 2642 W. Yeisley Road. He and nine others were digging a 25-30-foot long, 5-foot-plus deep trench at the time of the incident.
The state Department of Labor and Industries found that Stemilt failed to provide cave-in protection such as sloping, shielding or shoring, records show.
The agency found that 10 workers were repairing an irrigation pipe when the trench caved in, records show. The collapsing walls caused Alvarez to fall in the trench, where he was buried.
"While the dirt was slowly covering me... I was yelling, help me," Alvarez told state L&I officials. "And that was it. Everything went dark."
Co-workers were able to locate Alvarez and uncover his face after a couple minutes, allowing him to breath while they dug him out for another 10 minutes, records show. After being rescued, Alvarez was transported to a hospital for treatment of head, face and bodily injuries.
"This could have easily ended in death, all because the employer chose to ignore rules to protect workers," L&I Division of Occupational Safety and Health Assistant Director Craig Blackwood said.
"I don't want this to happen to another coworker," Alvarez said.
In March, L&I cited Stemilt with five violations in connection with the cave-in.
According to the agency, there was no safety equipment to prevent the trench from collapsing and there wasn't a ladder within 25 feet of the work area. Furthermore, dirt piles from excavating the trench were too close, which cause the walls to collapse.
The agency said dirt removed during trenching should've been at least 2 feet away.
L&I also found that Stemilt did not have a supervisor on site with proper training and knowledge to inspect the trench before workers entered, records show, noting the company did not have a trenching and excavation training program.
The company was also cited for filling in the trench before inspectors arrived, records show.
The company is appealing the citation.
L&I officials said this isn't the first time Stemilt has been fined for trenching violations.
In 2021, the company was fined $17,000 for violations of trench-safety rules during a dig in the Quincy area.
"We hope the latest fines will be the wake-up call that motivates Stemilt to keep their workers safe, before someone is killed," Blackwood said, noting his agency will be checking on Stemilt trench work more frequently due to having multiple violations.
According to L&I records, there has been an increase in trench collapses in recent years.
In February, a construction worker was rescued after a trench collapsed while he was installing pipes for a Sammamish home.
On July 4, 2022, David Ameh and Demetrius Sellers were killed in a trench collapse while working on a sewer line in Shoreline. Two months later, on Sept. 7, 2022, Surjit Gill was killed when the walls of a 20-foot deep trench collapsed and buried him.
Roger Harnack is co-owner and publisher of Free Press Publishing. An award-winning journalist, photographer, editor and publisher who grew up in Eastern Washington, he's one of only two Washington state journalists ever to receive the international Golden Quill for editorial/commentary writing. Roger is committed to preserving local media, and along with it, a local voice for Eastern Washington.
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