Worker airlifted to Saginaw after Wednesday cave-in buries two

Two men were injured Wednesday when they were buried alive following a cave-in at a construction site in Mount Pleasant.

Fire officials say the two are contract workers from the Sanford-based Carrol Excavating Inc., 1670 W. Nielson Road, in Midland County.

Mount Pleasant Fire Chief Greg Walterhouse said one of the two contractors was airlifted to St. Mary’s Hospital in Saginaw because of serious injuries.

The second man was treated for mild injuries at Central Michigan Community Hospital.

The two were working in a ditch on Abby Court on the east side of town, when there was a cave-in around 2 p.m. that completely buried one of the men and left the other buried up to his chest.

Part of the trench at the construction site collapsed, Walterhouse said, as the contractors began underground work.

“When you dig in soil a lot of times it doesn’t have the ability to hold weight,” he said.

More than 20 fire officials from the city and the tribal fire departments were at the scene for about an hour digging the men out before they were transported to hospitals.

Lynn Martel, 54, stood outside of her home with her 12-year-old daughter, Heather, watching fire officials rescue the men from the gravel, which lasted about an hour before they were evacuated and taken to hospitals.

She was driving back to her residence, directly across the street from the site, when police and fire officials arrived at the scene.

“It’s kind of scary when you go on your block and don’t even know what’s happening,” Martel said.

Martel, who is a trained nurse, said she was concerned because cave-in injuries are not only dangerous, but deadly.

“It’s pretty heavy stuff,” she said. “It can do a lot of internal damage.”