On July 30, at approximately 1:26 p.m., Alaska State Troopers received a report that two individuals had been trapped after a trench collapsed at a work site where a septic system was being installed near Delta Junction.

Troopers, along with local emergency responders, arrived at the scene and began an investigation into the incident.

The investigation determined that Paul Hebert, 68, and Jacquelyn Wilder, 71, both of Delta Junction, were working inside an excavation approximately 13 feet deep when the trench walls unexpectedly gave way.

The collapse buried both individuals beneath a large volume of soil, leaving them trapped. Despite recovery efforts by emergency personnel, both victims were pronounced deceased at the scene by emergency medical services.

As is standard procedure in cases involving unexpected deaths, the bodies will be transported to the State Medical Examiner’s Office, where examinations will be conducted to determine the official cause and manner of death.

Alaska State Troopers have notified the victims’ next of kin, and the investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident remains ongoing.