GOODYEAR, AZ — Two Valley construction companies face thousands of dollars in fines after a trench collapse killed a worker in July.
Ronnie Baquera Jr., 44, died July 28 when a trench caved in at a Goodyear construction site near 183rd Avenue and Lower Buckeye Road.
The Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health (ADOSH) completed its months-long investigation this week and cited two companies for serious safety violations.
CS Construction was fined $33,100 for failing to inspect and failing to have adequate protective systems in place for the trench. ADOSH also fined the general contractor at the site, Core Construction, $16,550.
The state’s report, released this week to ABC15, said workers were installing electrical conduit for a new traffic signal when the 6-foot-deep trench collapsed, trapping one worker.
Construction workers and first responders tried to rescue him.
“Unfortunately, what we found was that as we were pulling dirt out, additional dirt was continuing to collapse in on the individual who was inside,” Goodyear Police Deputy Chief Jose Gonzalez told ABC15 in July.
The rescue became a recovery mission.
Baquera left behind three children. Melissa Prado, mother of two of his children, remembered him as someone who was always there for his family.
“It was shocking,” Prado said in July.
Baquera grew up in El Paso, Texas, and moved to Phoenix after high school to attend the Arizona Automotive Institute. He worked as an auto mechanic for years before switching to construction.
ADOSH, the state’s worker-safety agency, investigated because his death happened on the job.
ABC15 reached out to his family on Friday; Prado said she had not yet seen the ADOSH report.
In July, Prado told ABC15 she wanted him remembered as someone who cared about others.
“He helped everybody. A good guy all around,” she said. “So it’s sad it had to happen this way.”
ABC15 reached out CS Construction and Core Construction for comment but has not yet heard back. Companies cited and fined by the state can file appeals.
Email ABC15 Investigator Anne Ryman at: anne.ryman@abc15.com, call her at 602-685-6345, or connect on X and Facebook.
