Miguel Reis Killed in Trench Collapse at Construction Site in Yarmouth, Massachusetts on November 18, 2025

A fatal trench collapse occurred on the morning of November 18, 2025, at a sewer construction site on South Shore Drive in Yarmouth, Massachusetts, resulting in the death of 61-year-old Miguel Reis of Fall River. Emergency personnel were dispatched shortly before 9:00 a.m. after a police detail officer reported the structural failure. Three workers had been inside the trench at the time of the collapse. One individual managed to escape, a second was freed after several hours and transported by MedFlight to Rhode Island Hospital, and Reis remained fully entrapped until rescuers recovered his body at approximately 2:45 p.m.

A large, multi-agency response was required due to the unstable conditions, involving Yarmouth Fire and Police, multiple regional fire departments, technical rescue teams, and federal investigators. Power to the area was temporarily shut down to protect responders working near utility infrastructure. The incident remains under active investigation by the Massachusetts State Police Detective Division and OSHA as authorities work to determine the contributing factors leading to the collapse.