2 workers killed in Shoreline trench collapse identified

SHORELINE, Wash. (AP) — A construction-company owner and a worker have been identified as the people killed in a trench collapse Monday just north of Seattle in Shoreline.

The Seattle Times reports David Ameh, 66, and Demetrius Seller, 32, died from suffocation during the collapse, the King County Medical Examiner’s Office announced. They were trying to replace a damaged sewer connection.

Ameh owns Peacefield Construction, which is based near Seattle and started in 2012, according to business license records. The state Department of Labor and Industries will investigate the incident, which generally takes six months.

The bodies of Ameh and Seller were recovered early Wednesday by the Shoreline Fire Department and partners who used hand tools, a vacuum hose, and protective metal boxes to reach them in unstable soil.