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| Zach Hess, 25, construction worker with JK Excavating buried alive more than 25 feet below ground after utility trench collapse in The Woodlands at Morrow, a new housing development off Morrow-Woodville Road/Ohio Route 24 being built by Ryan Homes |
MASON, Ohio —
The Mason man killed in a trench collapse in Morrow on Thursday is being remembered for the life he lived.
Zach Hess, 25, was killed at a work site in the Woodlands at Morrow subdivision. He was working in a trench when it caved in, burying him about 25 feet underground.
Hess' mother, Cindy Hess, says her son was a sweet boy who grew up into a handsome man with a beautiful spirit.
Cindy Hess said he loved his family and loved his job. She said he took great pride in his work.
Hess worked for JK Excavating and Utilities. According to public records released by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, JK Excavating was cited in 2014 for three "serious" trench violations.
The Mason-based company had to pay a $5,850 penalty.
The violations stemmed from a work site on Shadowcreek Court in Hamilton.
OSHA documents state, "On or about July 16, 2014, an employee was observed working in an excavation that was measured to be 7' in depth by 6' in width that had no suitable means of access/egress located within 25' of the work area within the excavation."
According to OSHA, "An employee was working in the bottom of an open excavation measured to be approximately 7' in depth while being exposed to materials and equipment falling into the excavation on top of them, posing a crushing/struck-by hazard."
Documents also stated that an employee was working in the excavation "without adequate protection against cave-ins, in that the walls of the excavation were not properly sloped, shored, benched or otherwise adequately protected against collapse."
The Morrow investigation could take months to complete.
Daniel Wood, JK Excavating safety specialist, released the following statement:
"On behalf of JK Excavating, on Thursday December 28 we did not just lose an employee in this tragic incident, we lost a family member! Our deepest sympathies and prayers are with the Hess and Bare family. We are working directly with the Department of Labor (OSHA) on this fact finding tragic incident. We have obtained the services of a third party Safety Consultant to lead JK Excavating in our own internal root cause investigation to this horrific incident that has deeply affected our JK Excavating family. Our thoughts and prayers are also with the first responders to this incident and all the mutual aid efforts to perform this unfortunate recovery!"
Although it will be a difficult road for the Hess' family, his mother said she is comforted by the outpouring of love for her son.
Hess' uncle Jim Fish said Zach Hess' father and step-mother, Todd and Cathy Hess, are also heartbroken tonight as are his siblings. Fish said everyone is thankful for the support and prayers the family is receiving.
Hopefully, JK Excavating, its owner(s) and the home builder(s) all pay dearly for this tragedy. This will not bring back Zach Hess, but at least these individuals need to be punished so that we save other workers' lives.
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MORROW, OHIO -
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has opened an investigation into Thursday's fatal Warren County trench collapse.
Zachary Hess, 25, of Mason, died Thursday when a trench collapsed at 5559 Anne Marie Drive in Morrow.
Warren County officials said the construction worker was buried up to his head when a 30-foot trench, which was near a new home foundation, collapsed.
"It's a process that you think you're there and then all of the sudden something else collapses and I hate to use the word collapse — but fills in around. So, you have to start excavating again to try to safely get this young man out.," Chief Investigator Doyle Burke said Thursday.
Officials said it took crews about 11 hours to recover his body.
The sheriff's office said he worked with JK Excavating.
Compliance officers were at the scene Friday talking to potential witnesses and the employer, trying to figure out what happened and whether the employer was using proper trenching equipment to prevent such incidents.
The investigation could take up to six months.
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SALEM TOWNSHIP, Ohio --
A worker died when a trench collapsed in a Morrow neighborhood Thursday afternoon, a spokesperson from the Warren County Sheriff's Office confirmed.
A JK Excavating employee was trapped in the trench at the Woodlands at Morrow neighborhood around 12:05 p.m. Thursday, according to dispatchers.
Approximately 150 first responders from several jurisdictions worked for hours to rescue the worker. Lt. John Faine said they could see the person when they first arrived on scene, but the worker was quickly swallowed by dirt. The trench was dug out for installing the utilities for the new development.
“Initially we had a little bit of sight of the victim there, and just in the short time, the hole continued to fall in more and actually completely bury the victim even more," Faine said.
Just before 3 p.m., Faine said the mission is now, officially, a mission to recover the deceased person's body. Faine estimated the worker is buried about 25 to 30 feet, and he said the recovery process will be "lengthy" and could take several hours.
Hamilton County Urban Search and Rescue arrived at the scene just after 1:15 p.m.
Officials from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are investigating the incident.
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MORROW, Ohio (WLWT) —
2:30 P.M. UPDATE: Officials say the worker who was buried in the collapsed trench has died. A recovery effort is underway to retrieve the body that is believed to be buried 25 feet below the surface.
Original 1:52 P.M.: First responders from several agencies are working to rescue a person from a trench collapse in Morrow.
The Hamilton County Urban Search and Rescue team as well as fire departments and other first responders have converged on the neighborhood.
The collapse was reported at about 12:30 p.m. in the 5500 block of Anne Marie Drive. The trench is in The Woodlands at Morrow, a new housing development off Morrow-Woodville Road/Ohio Route 24.
Police have not released any more information.
The construction at Anne Marie Drive is by the homebuilder Ryan Homes. Ryan Homes is owned by NVR, Inc. NVR, Inc. operates in two business segments: homebuilding and mortgage banking. The homebuilding unit sells and constructs homes under the Ryan Homes, NVHomes and Heartland Homes brands. As a corporate entity, NVR, Inc. provides various support functions for each of its sub-entities. These include sales and marketing support, vital human resource specialists, and an advanced information technology department, which provide a network of resources utilized by NVR, Inc. holdings.
NVR, Inc. is one of America’s leading homebuilders. The Company serves homebuyers in twenty-nine metropolitan areas in fourteen states, including, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Florida, Delaware, West Virginia and New Jersey, as well as Washington, D.C.
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One person dead in Morrow trench collapse, Warren County officials say
December 28, 2017
WCPO Digital Team
Salem Township, Ohio --
One person died when a trench collapsed in a Morrow neighborhood Thursday afternoon, a spokesperson from the Warren County Sheriff's Office confirmed.
A trench in the Woodlands at Morrow neighborhood collapsed around 12:05 p.m. Thursday, according to dispatchers.
Construction crews were at the scene of the trench on Anne Marie Drive when it collapsed, as shown in Chopper 9's aerial video. The equipment and trucks at the scene say "JK Excavating."
Hamilton County Urban Search and Rescue arrived at the scene just after 1:15 p.m.
Just before 3 p.m., Lt. John Faine said the mission is now, officially, a mission to recover the deceased person's body.