Man Killed in Collapse was Illegal Alien

OSHA looking into circumstances leading to death

Tom Giordano, Correspondent
June 22, 2005
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1346&dept_id=434928&newsid=14738016&PAG=461&rfi=9

The Bridgeport worker who was killed in a construction accident in Shelton Saturday was an illegal alien, according to immigration officials, and the company for which he worked could face a fine of $70,000.

Admilson Dias Vieira, 36, of Bridgeport, a native of Brazil, died after the sides of a trench he was working on at 23 Bruce Drive collapsed on him.

Some 60 firefighters from Shelton, Bridgeport and Derby worked frantically for about five hours to rescue Vieira, who was buried under about 12 feet of dirt and boulders.

Vieira reportedly left a wife and three young sons in Brazil.

Investigators at the scene said the site may have collapsed because there was no shoring to support the trench Vieira was digging to install a retaining wall behind the house.

Vieira's co-workers tried to dig through the dirt to get him out, but they could not reach him in time.

The residents of the house where the work was being done were not home when the accident occurred, investigators said.

Vieira died of "accidental traumatic asphyxiation," according to a spokeswoman at the state medical examiner's office in Farmington. An autopsy completed Monday said his death "was caused by smothering."

Vieira reportedly was working for Edwardo Osello Painting and Masonry, based in Monroe. Several telephone calls to two numbers listed for the company were not returned.

Paula Grenier, a spokeswoman in the public affairs office of the U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement office in Boston, Mass., said Tuesday, "We checked our records and found that [Vieira] was an illegal alien.

"Our database indicates that the person with the name Admilson Dias Vieira, with his date of birth, was in this country illegally," Grenier said.

Whether Vieira was officially employed by Edwardo Osello Painting and Masonry, or any other company for that matter, has not yet been determined, according to Robert Kowalski, area director at the U.S. Labor Department's Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) office in Bridgeport.

"This is a multi-jurisdictional case and very complicated," Kowalski said. "We have a compliance officer assigned to the investigation, and then there are the local and state authorities who also are looking into it. We're all coordinating the investigation."

Kowalski said once they determine who Vieira worked for, "then it has to be determined what kind of employer-employee relationship existed, if any, and what kind of violation occurred to establish what amount of fine would be levied," Kowalski said. "It could run as high as $70,000 if it's determined that the company he worked for committed a willful violation, which would call for the highest fine."

Kowalski, whose OSHA office covers Fairfield, New Haven and Middlesex counties, said his agency has, by federal statute, six months from the date of the accident to conclude its investigation.

"We try to do it a lot sooner than that," said Kowalski. "It's hard to tell how long it might take, since we just started the investigation. We could have it wrapped up in three months, or it could take a little longer. We'll continue the investigation until we determine the root cause of the accident."

In addition to the several agencies assisting in the rescue attempt, Echo Hose Ambulance dispatched two ambulances and personnel to the scene.

"We got a call about the accident at 6:20 p.m.," said Echo Hose Chief Jason Perillo of Shelton. "Soon after our people arrived, they determined that it wouldn't be a quick rescue. In those cases, our equipment and personnel remain at the site on stand-by to offer any assistance they can."

Joe Laucella of Shelton, supervisor of operations for Echo Hose, said he "watched the great effort that the firefighters from Bridgeport, Derby and Shelton put into trying to rescue the man and save his life. It took five hours to get him out, but unfortunately, it was too late."

Laucella said he and his colleagues remained at the site throughout the ordeal. "We stay on the scene because with the number of firefighters there working in such a dangerous environment, it's our job to monitor their health and physical needs. If someone gets hurt or collapses, it's our job to not only give medical care, but to assist them by giving them water and food, which we did," Laucella said. "Luckily, no one was injured during the rescue effort."