Istanbul foundation dig caves in and kills a worker as his brother is pulled out alive

The soil gave way at about 12:35 p.m. while a machine was digging the foundation at a site in the Siyavuşpaşa neighborhood, the DHA news agency reported. Police, firefighters, medics and the AFAD disaster agency responded, and a four-story building next to the site was evacuated as a precaution. Nuri Aslan, acting mayor of Istanbul, said the rescued brother was in good condition. Hasan Uzunoğlu's body was taken to the Forensic Medicine Institute.

Aslan said the ground slid during excavation for a shaft foundation. A man working nearby told DHA the site was an urban renewal project and that several days of rain had left the soil very wet. Officials have not given a cause, and the reports did not name the contractor. Bahçelievler Mayor Hakan Bahadır said every aspect of the accident has to be cleared up.

It is the second excavation failure in Bahçelievler in less than two weeks: in late October a retaining wall around another foundation pit in the district gave way. A day before this cave-in, in the Etiler area of Beşiktaş, a retaining wall at the entrance of a four-story building collapsed toward a neighboring construction site and took the front steps with it. Firefighters brought out a couple trapped inside, and no one was hurt, A Haber reported.

In the United States, OSHA's excavation standard (29 CFR 1926.652) requires a protective system such as sloping, shoring or a shield in any excavation 5 feet deep or more, unless the cut is entirely in stable rock.