Trenching and excavation are among the most dangerous jobs, according to the United States Department of Labor. OSHA’s definition of excavation is any trench, cavity, depression, or cut that is man-made on the surface of the earth made by the removal of dirt. OSHA defines a trench as an underground excavation that has greater depth than width but isn’t any wider than 14-and-a-half feet. Important trench safety.

The Dangers of Working With Trenches

The greatest risk of working with trenches is cave-ins. When there is a cave-in, it is much more likely to lead to fatalities or serious injuries than other excavation accidents. Other hazards associated with trenches include falls and loads falling off as well as accidents that involve mobile equipment and its operation. Every year there are dozens of fatalities and hundreds of injuries from trench collapses.

Protecting Workers Around Trenches

No worker should enter a trench that isn’t protected. Trenches that are 5 feet deep or deeper must have a protective system unless it is made completely of stable rock. If a trench is 20 feet deep or more requires a protective system that is designed by a registered professional engineer or based on tabulated data that has been prepared or approved by an engineer.

Protective Systems

Different kinds of protective systems are used for trenches. Cutting back the trench wall at an angle that is inclined away from the excavation, sloping is an effective protective system. Another option would be shoring, which requires installing aluminum hydraulic or other supports to keep soil from moving and causing cave-ins. Workers are shielded using trench boxes or other supports to help prevent cave-ins. Designing a protective system for a trench can be complicated because multiple factors must be considered including the cut depth, the soil’s water content, soil classification, changes because of the climate or the weather, the materials that are going to be used inside the trench, and other activity within the vicinity.

Regular Inspections

OSHA standards require daily inspection of trenches by a competent individual who can identify any existing hazards, predict hazards, or determine if working conditions are hazardous, unsanitary or dangerous to the workers. This competent individual must be authorized to take corrective actions to either control or eliminate the hazards.

Excavation and trench work is the most hazardous construction operations. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) defines an excavation as any trench, cut, or cavity that is made by man. These depressions in the ground are made by removing the earth. A trench is a narrow underground area that has been excavated to be deeper than it is wide, but it cannot be wider than 15 feet. So why is trench safety so important?

There are dangers with any construction work, but when it comes to trenching there is a risk that a cave-in could occur. Cave-ins could result in the loss of life and are much more likely to cause fatalities than any other excavation-related accident. There are many other risks, such as falling loads, falls, and the risks of working with mobile equipment. There are hundreds of workers injured and dozens killed by trench cave-ins every year.

Properly Protect Yourself From Trench Collapses

Workers should never enter a trench that isn’t protected. Trenches that are at least five feet deep should have a protective system unless it is in solid rock that is stable. Trenches that are 20 feet deep require a protective system to be designed by an engineer or based on tabulated data that has been prepared and reviewed by a qualified engineer.

Many effective protective systems are used for trenches. Shielding uses trench boxes or supports to keep the dirt from caving in. Shoring involves the installation of aluminum hydraulics or other kinds of supports to stop cave-ins or the movement of dirt. Sloping is an approach that involves cutting back the trench wall at an angle that is away from the point of excavation.

The design of a protective system can be complex since there are a variety of factors that must be taken into consideration. The engineer must consider the soil classification, the depth of the cut, the soil’s water content, climate or weather changes, and any other operations in the area. OSHA requires that the trenches be inspected on a daily basis, and if there are problems that arise, they must be corrected by a competent individual who is trained to handle such problems.

Trenching, or digging a ditch, may look like it is a simple process that anyone with a shovel or a rented backhoe can do. But that mistake causes many accidents and even deaths every year. According to OSHA (Occupational Safety & Health Administration), “the fatality rate for excavation work is 112% higher than the rate for general construction.”

Trenching Safety

Here are the four top causes of injury, according to OSHA’s Trenching & Excavation eTool:

1. no protective system
2. failure to inspect trench and protective systems
3. unsafe spoil-pile placement
4. unsafe access/egress

The eTool has simple guides for avoiding each of these, but reading some information is not the same thing as being trained by qualified instructors. These teachers have the credentials that result in certifications future employers and insurance companies respect.

Why Training Is Better Than Teaching Yourself

Excavators do a dangerous job. When the consequences of making a mistake are things like injury or death, it’s better to begin the learning process in a classroom with expert teachers who can give you the benefit of their experience. You can learn about the types of mistakes that can be made and what will happen. Then, after the “head” knowledge is there, the “seat-of-the-pants” knowledge can be added in an environment designed to keep mistakes from being deadly.

Everyone makes mistakes when learning how to do something even trenching. That’s why some teachers say that F-A-I-L stands for “First Attempt In Learning”. Teaching yourself certain skills is a very good idea, and reading up on OSHA guides to a career you are interested in is a good idea, too. But if you are interested in operating heavy equipment, particularly those that are used in excavating, the best thing you can do is invest in credentialed training like that offered at ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Training School.