Repair work begins on collapsed trench in Charleroi
A five-hour rescue effort took place after the Aug. 28 incident on McKean Avenue in Charleroi.
Nearly three months after a trench collapse shut down a busy stretch of McKean Avenue and triggered one of the largest rescue operations the Mon Valley has seen, repair work on the damaged roadway in Charleroi began Monday.
Borough Manager Joe Manning said Morgan Excavating arrived early to start removing the mounds of dirt that have sat untouched since the August collapse.
Crews will repair the broken sewer lateral and backfill the trench.
PennDOT plans to pour a concrete base once that work is done, let it cure over the holiday weekend, and return Dec. 1 to finish repairs and pave the state route.
The section of McKean Avenue between Eighth and Ninth streets has been closed since Aug. 28, forcing a detour on Route 88 while the borough, PennDOT and the Authority of the Borough of Charleroi worked through permitting and responsibility questions.
The collapse
The trench failed around 8:30 p.m. Aug. 28 while a worker was inside.
Authorities said the man was pinned beneath a small excavator when the walls gave way, burying him up to his chest.
Charleroi police immediately shut down the area as fire and rescue crews from five counties rushed in.
Bujanowski Towing stabilized the excavator while firefighters shored the trench and supplied the worker with oxygen.
More than 20 fire departments, EMS units, HAZMAT, Pennsylvania Search and Rescue, PennDOT, Columbia Gas, West Penn Power and even a LifeFlight doctor responded.
Around 1:30 a.m., after almost five hours of digging, the trapped worker, Vincenzo Lopez, walked out on his own before being taken to Allegheny General Hospital.
Lopez publicly thanked the rescuers weeks later during an Oct. 14 recognition ceremony at Pennsylvania Urban Search and Rescue Strike Team 1 headquarters in Carnegie, where he spoke for the first time about the night they saved him.
Permits and citations
The trench was dug for a private sewer line repair at the former Davies Ford, but the contractor had not secured the required permits.
Manning said no sidewalk excavation permit was issued by the borough.
PennDOT confirmed no Highway Occupancy Permit was filed, even though the work took place on a state road.
Former Davies Ford owner Jim Davies previously said he hired Frontier Heating and Cooling of Monessen to handle a private project for the business.
The contracting business owned by Charles Mrlack was cited by the borough Sept. 10 with five traffic and permitting violations. His first two summary hearings were continued, and he is now scheduled to appear before Magisterial District Judge Eric Porter at 10:15 a.m. Wednesday.
OSHA findings
Federal investigators found significant safety failures.
OSHA’s report states Frontier Heating and Cooling allowed an employee to work in an approximately 16-foot-deep trench without cave-in protection and failed to remove workers despite clear signs of danger.
The agency issued two serious violations Sept. 30.
One carried a $3,972 penalty and the other carried no monetary fine.
OSHA released the site shortly after the rescue so repairs could move forward, but the enforcement case remains open.
Despite the site being released soon after the collapse, repairs to fill the hole and reopen the road did not begin until Monday.
Manning said the delay came down to coordinating three separate entities, each with its own requirements.
“Being a state road, there were some issues regarding permitting as it involved PennDOT, the Authority and the borough, so it took some time to work through,” he said.
With Morgan Excavating now on site, PennDOT will take over next.
The agency plans to pour concrete this week, let it set through the holiday and complete paving Dec. 1, with the road expected to reopen shortly afterward.
