A construction worker who died when a trench collapsed Friday in Daly City has been identified by the San Mateo County Coroner’s Office as 33-year-old Abel Sauceda of Modesto.
Sauceda was working for Platinum Pipeline Inc. on a residential construction site at 1 Martin St. around 11:20 a.m. when the fatal incident occurred, according to the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health.
Fire officials said crews were grading a trench that was 12 feet deep in an effort to put in a 24-inch drainpipe. Search and rescue crews were summoned to the scene, but it took roughly 12 hours to extricate the man.
Cal/OSHA is investigating what caused Sauceda’s death and has six months to issue any citations if workplace safety regulation violations occurred.
A GoFundMe page set up at gofundme.com/nwvw5-abel-sauceda-quinonez to help the family pay for funeral costs and send Sauceda’s body to be buried in Mexico has raised more than $10,500 as of this afternoon.