Zach Taylor, president of Milania Corporation, and Alex Parker, owner of Parker Rock ’N Dirt, delivered a clear, no-nonsense talk about why trench safety should never be taken lightly. Drawing from real jobsite experience and personal stories, they covered both the nuts and bolts of trenching and what can happen when safety steps are skipped.
They explained how different soil types can determine whether a trench stands or caves in, and why checking the ground before digging is critical. They also walked through how shoring and other protective systems work, and why the right protection has to match the specific job. OSHA requirements were part of the conversation, but their main point was simple: safety is about more than rules. It is about protecting lives.
A big part of the discussion focused on responsibility. From company leaders to the workers in the trench, everyone has a role in preventing accidents. Taylor and Parker shared recent data on trench collapse deaths and stories of incidents that turned deadly in seconds when basic precautions were ignored. Hearing from survivors made it clear that behind every statistic is a real person with coworkers, friends and family.
About the Author
Gavin Jenkins, Senior Managing Editor
Senior Managing Editor
Gavin Jenkins is an award-winning journalist based in Pittsburgh. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, VICE, Narrative.ly, Prevention, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and Beijing Review.
In 2020, two stories he wrote for Pitt Med Magazine earned three Golden Quill Awards from the Press Club of Western Pennsylvania. “Surviving Survival” won Excellence in Corporate, Marketing and Promotional Communications – Written, Medical/Health, while “Oct. 27, 2018: Pittsburgh’s Darkest Day, and the Mass Casualty Response” won Excellence in Written Journalism, Magazines – Medical/Health, as well as the Ray Sprigle Memorial Award: Magazines, a Best in Show award.
After graduating from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown in 2003, he covered sports for the Bedford Gazette, in Bedford, Pa., and the Martinsville Bulletin, in Martinsville, Va. In 2006, he returned to Pittsburgh to write for Trib Total Media. Based out of the Kittanning Leader Times, he worked for the Trib for two years, and then he moved to Shenzhen, China, to teach English and freelance. After two years in China, he earned an MFA in nonfiction from the University of Pittsburgh.
When he's not at work, he's usually playing with his border-collie mix, Bob.