Two people died Thursday in a construction-site accident in Delta Junction, according to authorities.
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Alaska State Troopers said 68-year-old Paul Hebert and 71-year-old Jackie Wilder were killed when the 13-foot-deep trench they were working in collapsed. Both victims were residents of Delta.
Troopers got a report around 1:30 p.m. Thursday that two people had been buried while installing a septic system at a local medical clinic.
Rural Deltana Volunteer Fire Department also responded to the incident at the Delta Medical Center on Remington Road.
Fort Greely emergency personnel and a local construction company helped excavate the site, a fire department spokesperson said.
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EMTs then recovered the victims and declared them deceased. Next of kin were notified.
The trooper dispatch said the bodies were sent to the State Medical Examiner’s Office for autopsy.
A trooper spokesperson said in an email Saturday that the agency is looking into the accident. He said the investigation is specific to determining if any criminal conduct contributed to a person’s death.
He added that authorities have not identified any criminal conduct, and they’re awaiting the outcome of the autopsy from the Medical Examiner’s Office.
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