Worker injured in fall into hole; Backhoe knocks man into pit in North Port, bystander says.(B SECTION)

Byline: CHRISTINA E. SANCHEZ christina.sanchez@heraldtribune.com

NORTH PORT -- A construction worker, working 30 feet underground, fell into a 13-foot cavity the size of a coffin where he was trapped for nearly an hour before rescue crews lifted him out Monday morning.

The accident occurred at about 11:15 a.m. while workers were installing pipe lines for the Thomas Ranch development on U.S. 41 on the north edge of North Port.

The man, whose name was not released Monday, was working in a man-made dirt pit 30 feet below ground level. A bystander told fire officials that the arm of a backhoe swung around and knocked him into the deeper hole, said …