OSHA Fines Landscape Co. $77K after 2 Workers Die in Trench Collapse

The death of two workers from the collapse of a trench that was not equipped with cave-in protection prompted the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration to propose $77,000 in fines against a New Jersey landscaping and snow removal business. OSHA said Oscar Portillo and Selvin Zelaya were killed while installing a French drain system in a trench 9 to 13 feet deep at the historic James Dixon Farm in Boonton, New Jersey. Their employer, Bednar Landscape Services, did not install cave-in protection, OSHA said. OSHA found Bednar responsible for one willful and nine serious safety viol...