An Edmond construction contractor with a history of workplace safety violations was found disregarding U.S. Department of Labor regulations following a deadly trench collapse.

In February, Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigators learned a 61-year-old worker employed by Jerlow Construction Co. died after a 9-foot deep trench collapsed at a residential worksite in Shawnee. The agency determined the employer allowed workers to do their jobs without proper protection equipment.

Jerlow Construction Co. installs and services sanitary and storm sewers and water mains for residential developments and commercial projects.

OSHA Area Director Steven Kirby wrote in a press release, employers who defy federal regulations which result in preventable loss are inexcusable.

“No one should ever be allowed to enter or work in an excavation without required protective systems in place and without inspection of the trench by a qualified person,” Kirby wrote.

Following the investigation, OSHA issued citations to Jerlow Construction for one repeat violation and three serious violations. Infractions included failing to provide adequate systems to prevent trench cave-ins, train employees on how to recognize hazards related to excavations, and perform daily inspections to verify safe entry conditions for the excavation.

Jerlow Construction faces $85,173 in proposed penalties. The company has 15 business days from receiving the citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area director, or contest the findings.

A recent investigation by NPR, Texas Public Radio and 1A found more than 250 people across the country have died in the past decade when trenches they were working in collapses. Experts say, in every instance, the deaths were preventable, and the companies failed to follow basic rules to make the trenches safe.