Employer Cited in Death of Worker at Well Site

The employer of a worker killed Aug. 13 at a well-digging site in Bell has been cited for four safety violations in the incident and fined $6,500. The employee was crushed when a 15-foot-deep pit he was standing in collapsed around him.

McCalla Bros. Pump & Drilling was digging a well for Southern California Water Co. when Ken Stott, 50, of San Bernardino, died. The firm was fined $4,000 for not properly shoring up the pit, $2,000 for not conducting a proper safety survey of the site, and $500 for not having a permit for a hole of such depth. The firm also was cited for not having safety codes on site as required.

Richard Stephens, a spokesman for the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration, said the Chino-based company had been cited earlier this year for the first two violations at another work site.