California fire crews free man trapped in sewer trench

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Fire crews in Oakland have rescued a man trapped in a collapsed trench after a 10-hour ordeal.

Tuesday afternoon, an independent contractor was trying to replace and attach a sewer service line from an East Oakland home to a main sewage pipe under the street when the trench collapsed on him. It happened around 12:30pm on E. 23rd Street and 21st Avenue and the work was being done for the homeowner.

The worker, who works for Star Rooter and Plumbing, had to go down 13 feet underground to work on the line. What once was a 4x3-foot hole closed up to about a 2x3-foot space.

According to a fire official, there was not sufficient cribbing -- plywood around the hole -- so dirt started caving in, burying him up to his chest. After hours of the rescue underway, the level of dirt trapping the man is now down to his knees.

A friend identified the worker as 41-year-old Rogelio Esparza, who lives in Hayward. Esparza told his friend that he was buried alive.

Heavy rescue teams are trying to shore up the trench so they can safely remove him. Fire crews said this would be a long process.

Esparza has a harness on and is hooked up to an IV. Medical crews are keeping an eye on his vital signs as temperatures fall overnight, which could hamper his condition.

They are concerned about his circulation due to all of the pressure that is squeezing his lower extremities.

The soil has consistency of sand, which is making it very difficult to hold it back. That is why they are using a street cleaner to vacuum the dirt out of the trench while they dig. Esparza's foot is also trapped in a squishy clay, creating a suction force that is holding him down. That is a complication that has caused this rescue to drag on for so long.

Rain moved into the Bay Area overnight so sand bags were brought in around 11pm to try to keep any rainwater from flowing into the trench.