Answering the Call: ADB's Role in Local Trench Rescue

Safety isn’t just a value we hold for our own crews; it’s a standard we’re ready to extend to anyone who needs it. That commitment was put to the test on an ordinary afternoon when a 911 call came in requesting our help — and specifically, one of our hydrovac trucks — for a trench collapse on Country Manor Lane in Creve Coeur. An individual had been buried waist-deep, eight to ten feet down, in a trench that had caved in on itself in a way that made safely shoring it up extremely difficult. What followed was more than two hours of careful, high-stakes work by first responders and our own team working side by side.

Four members of our team answered that call: Derek Dickey, John Sheldon, Jason Gibson, and Kaden Ketcherside. They brought our hydrovac equipment to a scene where traditional excavation could have put the trapped worker at even greater risk, using it to carefully remove soil around him without adding pressure or instability to an already dangerous situation.

Trench rescues are among the most difficult scenarios emergency crews face. The ground itself is the hazard, and every movement has to be deliberate. Because of the professionalism of everyone on scene, including our crew, the worker walked to the stretcher on his own two feet.

Our Regional Safety Manager, John Langford, put it simply in recognizing the team afterward:

“What you did out there wasn’t in a job description. It took calm under pressure, real skill, and the willingness to step into a dangerous situation to help a stranger. That’s character, and it’s the best of what ADB stands for.”

The rescue was also a reminder of why partnerships between private industry and public safety agencies matter.

Our team worked alongside the St. Louis County Special Operations Team, Creve Coeur Fire Protection District, and Maryland Heights Fire Department in a true multi-agency response. Each group brought expertise the situation demanded, and the coordinated effort between fire, rescue, and our own crew is exactly the kind of relationship that saves lives when circumstances turn dangerous with little warning.

This is the ADB way when it counts: showing up, staying steady, and doing the work that needs to be done, whether it’s on one of our own job sites or someone else’s emergency. Derek, John, Jason, and Kaden didn’t just represent our company well that day; they helped save a life, and they did it as a team.

We’re proud of what they did on Country Manor Lane, and we’re grateful to have partners in local fire and rescue who make moments like this possible.