A construction worker died Wednesday after a trench he was working in collapsed, burying him up to his chest, officials said.
The deadly accident took place about 6:25 p.m. at a property at 5055 N. Louise Ave., Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Nicholas Prange said. The trench was described as 10 to 20 feet deep.
"Initial findings suggests the worker descended into the trench to do work on an underground sewer line when a catastrophic failure of the trench occurred," Prange said. The worker ended up buried up to his chest.
Firefighters set to work shoring up the compromised trench to prevent further collapse and dig the injured man out, officials said.
But about an hour into the rescue effort, firefighters determined the patient was "beyond medical help" and pronounced him dead at the scene, Prange said.