A quick-thinking passerby and an RTD bus driver helped save a Wheat Ridge man who may have been trapped for nearly 24 hours in a 15-foot construction trench on Saturday, according to fire officials.
The man was pulled to safety after the passerby heard someone calling for help and waved down the bus driver to get emergency crews on the way. West Metro Fire Rescue lowered firefighters into the trench, secured the man in a Stokes basket and used a rope system to hoist him up to street level. He was then taken to a nearby hospital with injuries that were described as non-life-threatening.
What West Metro Reported
According to West Metro Fire Rescue, crews found the man in a construction zone near N. Crossing Drive and Clear Creek Drive after a passerby heard a voice from the trench and responded. The passerby then flagged down an RTD driver, who called 911 and set off a multi-unit response.
West Metro said the call brought out Engine 5, Medic 5, Medic 10, Rescue 10, Truck 14, Safety and Medical Officer 1 (SAM1), WMAir, and District 1. Two firefighters climbed down a ladder to reach the man and assess his condition, then crews rigged a rope-and-basket system to carefully lift him out of the 15-foot-deep excavation.
Why Trenches Are So Dangerous
Trench collapses rank among the most dangerous hazards on construction sites, because soil can shift suddenly and bury someone before they have any chance to react, federal safety officials say. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration requires protective systems for trenches that are 5 feet deep or more, according to OSHA.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health notes that the safest option is often to avoid going into a trench altogether, or to use proper shoring, shielding or sloping to reduce the risk of a cave-in, per NIOSH. If this excavation was part of a workplace operation, those standards would apply to on-site safety and to any later review of what happened.
How West Metro's Technical Team Responded
West Metro describes a standing technical rescue capability that covers rope, structural collapse, confined-space, and trench incidents, with specialized gear staged at designated rescue stations to handle complicated extractions, according to West Metro Fire Rescue. The district's Standard of Cover identifies Rescue 10 and truck companies as primary resources for heavy technical responses and patient packaging in challenging conditions.
In this case, the department credited coordinated work by those crews, along with the quick actions of the passerby and the RTD driver who helped locate the man and get help on scene.
Victim Condition And Next Steps
According to West Metro Fire Rescue, the man was placed in a Stokes basket for the lift and transported to a hospital with injuries that were considered non-life-threatening.
