Bardstown company fined in 2022 trench collapse death in Louisville

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Workplace safety regulators fined a Bardstown company $21,650 after a worker died in a trench collapse in Louisville last year and issued three "serious" violations.

Earth Works LLC has contested the citations handed down by the Kentucky Labor Cabinet in December. The case remains open.

Jerry Hagan, 45, was killed on July 6, 2022, while working in a roughly 10-foot trench "when the trench wall collapsed. The employee died while trapped in the trench," according to online records of the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

The excavation site was on West Orell Road near Valley Station. Inspectors cited Earth Works under federal safety standards, including one meant to ensure workers have structures in place to protect against cave-ins.

Hagan’s death was one of 20 workplace fatalities in Kentucky last year, according to OSHA data.

The state labor cabinet oversees Kentucky’s workplace safety program under an agreement with the federal government. The program covers most private workers and all local government and state employees.