Worker killed in San Francisco trench collapse identified
A 25-year-old man who died when a trench collapsed in San Francisco on Thursday morning was a contractor working on a sewer upgrade construction project, city officials said.
The San Francisco Medical Examiner's Office on Friday identified the worker as 25-year-old Javier Romero from Alameda County.
Romero became trapped under 8 feet of dirt when the trench collapsed in the area of Oak and Divisadero streets. The San Francisco Fire Department had initially written on social media around 10:35 a.m. Thursday about a technical rescue underway there.
First responders from multiple city agencies, as well as a search dog and trench collapse experts, worked to try to rescue Romero, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
He was working on part of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's Panhandle and Inner Sunset Large Sewer Rehabilitation Project to upgrade existing sewer mains and sewer laterals in the area, SFPUC officials said in a statement.
The city's Department of Public Works was managing construction on the project and its contractor was D'Arcy & Harty Construction Inc.
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health is investigating the trench collapse and the SFPUC said the city agencies involved are fully cooperating with the investigation.
"Our deepest condolences go out to the family and loved ones of this worker, and our thoughts are with everyone affected by this situation," the SFPUC said in its statement. "We want to thank all of the crews who responded to the scene and worked swiftly and tirelessly on this incident."