Construction worker dies in accident at construction site in Scripps Ranch

SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — A construction worker was killed in an accident at a water construction site after dirt and a pipe crushed the worker at the bottom of a trench, officials said.

According to San Diego Fire Department officials, rescue crews were called to a water main construction site in the 11200 block of Hoyt Park Drive, near Scripps Ranch Boulevard, around 4 a.m. in what was known as a trench rescue.

SDFD officials said they were notified that a worker was lying about 20 feet down in a trench covered in dirt and a concrete pipe. A fellow worker who was also in the trench at the time was able to get free.

Rescue workers arrived shortly afterward, but paramedics determined that the worker had died. Officials believe an unstable foundation caused the 4-foot-wide pipe to fall on the worker.

ABC 10News learned that rescue workers plan to use a special truck and other heavy machinery to remove earth from the trench in order to recover the deceased worker.

Cal/OSHA officials were en route to the scene of the accident to conduct an investigation.