Water Worker Hospitalized After Trench Collapses

A water department employee in Floyd County, GA, was trapped in a trench from the waist down for three hours on November 14, according to a report in The Atlanta Journal Constitution.

“A Floyd County Water Department worker was taken to the hospital after he had to be rescued from a trench he became trapped in while working off Shorter Avenue earlier in the day,” the Rome News-Tribune reported.

Shawn Michael Marie, 25, who had worked for the water department for about two years, became trapped from the waist down after the trench broke on him, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

“The man was identified by his wife, Madison Marie, as 25-year-old Shawn Michael Marie, who has worked with the water department for about two years. He was treated and released from Floyd Medical Center Tuesday night,” the report said, citing hospital spokesman Dan Bevels.

Marie’s wife, Madison Marie, spoke to the Rome News-Tribune about what happened.

“She said she was told that an 18-wheeler had driven by and the trench caved in,” the report said. “His wife stood by as rescue personnel worked, making calls as she worried for her husband.”

A backhoe and a vacuum truck were among the equipment used to free the worker, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

Marie’s story is a reminder of the dangerous conditions many water workers face every day as they ensure water service for customers. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration reports that on average, 13 workers die in the U.S. each day, per 2015 statistics.

For similar stories visit Water Online’s Labor Solutions Center.