Title: Introduction to Trenching & Excavation Safety
Type: Lesson
Excavation work is some of the most dangerous work in construction. Every year, workers are seriously injured or killed when trenches collapse, flood, or fill with toxic gases.
According to OSHA, trench cave-ins are:
More likely to be fatal than other construction incidents
Often caused by lack of protection systems
100% preventable when proper safety measures are followed
Excavation is any man-made cut, cavity, trench, or depression in the earth’s surface formed by earth removal.
Trench means a narrow excavation — deeper than it is wide — typically no wider than 15 feet at the bottom.
Trenching and excavation activities are regulated by: 🔹 OSHA 1926 Subpart P: Excavations
This standard requires:
A competent person to inspect trench conditions daily
Use of protective systems (sloping, shoring, shielding)
Safe access and egress for workers
Constant monitoring of atmospheric hazards, soil stability, and water accumulation
Soil may seem stable but can give way without warning due to:
Vibration from equipment or traffic
Rain, groundwater, or frost
Improper spoil pile placement
Lack of support systems
Type of soil (we’ll cover this in Lesson 3)
Trenches can look safe on the outside — but collapse in less than one second. Every trench must be treated as a hazard unless proven otherwise.
Click “Mark Complete” to continue to Lesson 2: Common Hazards and Cave-In Risks, where we’ll identify trench-specific dangers and how to prevent them.