A Racine man was killed Wednesday while installing a sewer line for a new Wal-Mart Supercenter near Kenosha.
Authorities said Juan Oviedo, 52, was in a trench up to 30-feet deep and the wet soil flowed around him causing him to be trapped.
Two co-workers were trying to free Oviedo when rescue personnel arrived a little before nine a.m.
At that point, he was talking and was freed to around his chest. But the unstable ground kept caving in. Officials said the soil was filling the trench as fast as they could dig it out.
By late morning, a mudslide formed, and Oviedo was dead. It took about 12 more hours to recover his body.
I was driving to Regency Mall in Racine last night when I saw an incredibly bright light near County S (I live near there) on the lot of a massive construction site. For the last few months they have been moving dirt around in great quanities with their nifty yellow machines and ever morning I drive past dozens of guys in pickup trucks drinking their coffee before the day starts.
I just assumed it was more construction work until I got closer and saw there were several cranes set up as lighting fixtures and visual cacophony of blue and red emergency lights. Around the emergency vehicles and on down the road were nearly a dozen news vans with their camera towers fully extended.
On the way home at around 8:30 PM there had been only an increase in activity and news presence. I wish I had brought a camera but didn't. Hopefully Christmas will take care of that for me. Anyway, this morning the activity had much diminished and reading the account in the news makes it clear why.
Rest in peace, sir. I can't think of a much more horrible way to go.
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