Worker Miraculously Alert and Able to Speak After Over 4 Hours Stuck in Collapsed Trench in Yarmouth; Another Tragically Dies [HN Video]
YARMOUTH, MASSACHUSETTS – A large trench at a construction site in Yarmouth collapsed around 8:45 AM on Tuesday, trapping workers at the location on South Shore Drive near the Skipper Restaurant. The crews were reportedly working on a sewer project when the incident occurred. A police officer working a detail at the site reportedly called in the collapse, prompting a major response from Cape Cod emergency officials, including the Barnstable County Tech Rescue Team.
One worker was pulled from the hole and eventually placed in an ambulance. He was taken to Cape Cod Hospital. Two others remained trapped in the collapsed roadway trench.
According to an earlier Facebook post from the Yarmouth Police Department: “Yarmouth Police and Fire departments are on the scene of a trench collapse with entrapment at a work site located at 152 South Shore Drive in South Yarmouth. Workers were trapped following the collapse. What we know at this time: One worker has been extricated, and rescue teams are currently providing lifesaving measures. Crews are still currently working the scene. We ask the Media to please stage at the Parkers River Lodge on South Shore Drive. We ask the public to avoid the area to allow emergency personnel to work safely and efficiently.”
Hyannis News was on the scene and captured video of tech rescue team members extracting one of the trapped construction workers after he had been stuck for over 4 hours. The worker was miraculously alert and able to speak with first responders, even reaching out to hold a man’s hand as he was rushed on a stretcher to an awaiting ambulance. He was then transported to nearby Smuggler’s Beach, where he was loaded into a Medflight helicopter and airlifted to an off-Cape trauma center.
Tragically, a third collapse victim reportedly did not survive.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is on the scene investigating the incident.
[DEVELOPING] HN will update this story here as more official details become available…
The following Hyannis News video documents the entire scene.
[HN VIDEO – PRESS PLAY]
