Reports detail response to fatal construction site collapse

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

Incident reports from the Jefferson City police and fire departments, obtained by ABC 17 News, walk through the investigation into a wall collapse that killed a construction worker.

A litany of emergency responders surrounded the construction site at the corner of Missouri Boulevard and Highway 50 around 1 p.m. on Jan. 28 after reports of a collapse.

One Schrimpf Landscaping Inc. worker, Jacob Schrimpf, was pinned by multiple stones weighing at least 250 lbs. each, according to the reports.

Schrimpf was pronounced deceased at the scene. Schrimpf Landscaping Inc. did not return a request for comment on Monday.

The stones were used to build a retaining wall surrounding a soon-to-be hotel. According to the reports, the company was stacking the stones along the pre-existing natural rock wall, also called a bluff.

Schrimpf and one other worker were between the bluff and the retaining wall at the time of the collapse, according to the police report, to distribute gravel used to fill the gap.

You can access each report below:

Another Schrimpf Landscaping worker, Mikel Belt, told police he was also inside the gap before the collapse. He yelled at Schrimpf when he saw blocks begin to shift, according to the report, but said it was "too late."

Several 250+ lb. stones pinned Schrimpf. Preliminary autopsy results said he died of compression asphyxiation. A final determination will be made when a toxicology test is complete.

The cause of the collapse is not made clear in the reports. Multiple witnesses told police that the equipment used for carrying the gravel, the telehandler, was not near the blocks when they fell.

The telehandler operator and site foreman, Kyle Rimel, told police that he was picking up gravel when the stones collapsed.

Officials with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration told ABC 17 News they have six months to investigate the incident.