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The penalty was assigned to Botticello Inc. in connection to the July 22, 2022 death of East Windsor resident Dennis Slater, age 56, who was buried when an eight-foot-deep trench caved in at a Vernon residential development construction site, the US Department of Labor announced on Monday, Jan. 30.
Slater had been connecting drainage piping when the trench caved in, officials said.
Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials said that the cave-in should have never happened, and that officials had previously found four OSHA violations at a Botticello Inc. construction site in Stafford related to trenching work in 2015.
"After a previous OSHA inspection, Botticello Inc. knew of the dangers of working in an unprotected trench and the need to inspect the trench and ensure required effective cave-in protection was in place before any employee entered the trench," said Hartford OSHA Area Director Dale Varney.
Varney added, "The company, however, still chose to ignore these required safeguards and now a worker’s family, friends and co-workers are left to grieve."
OSHA found the following violations related to the cave-in:
- A failure to provide the trench with a protective system to prevent collapse;
- A failure to have a competent person inspect the trench before and during work to identify any hazardous conditions;
- A failure to ensure the 135-foot trench had enough means of egress to allow employees to exit it safely.
As a result of the violations, Botticello Inc. was issued three willful violations and fined $375,021 in penalties.
The company now has 15 days to pay the fine, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
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