REVERE, MASS. (WHDH) - Two Department of Public Works employees were rushed to the hospital Tuesday after a trench collapsed on them in Revere.
Emergency crews were called to the scene on Railroad Avenue after a private contractor’s excavator struck a water main while working on laying down electrical lines in the area.
The mixture of dirt and water created a concrete-like consistency that trapped the men up to their knees and made the rescue challenging for firefighters.
“The suction of the water was pulling their feet down, so they really couldn’t pull their legs up” explained Deputy Fire Chief Tom Todisco. “They had shovels and they were digging the two workers out. It took them about 10 to 15 minutes to get them out.”
Eventually, the men were pulled to safety in baskets before being transported to Massachusetts General Hospital with non-life-threatening leg injuries.
Todisco said they are lucky their injuries were not more severe.
All work on the project has been suspended while OSHA investigated the cause of the incident.
Crews were seen backfilling the holes later in the evening.
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