Robert Higgins and Kelvin Mattocks went to work on a fall day in Boston, just like any other day. On that day – Oct. 21, 2016 – the approximately 12-foot deep, unshored trench in which they were working collapsed, trapping them in soil up to their waists.

As their coworkers scrambled to dig them out, an adjacent fire hydrant supply line snapped, filling the trench with water. Despite the desperate efforts of their coworkers, the men died at the scene.