Worker dies after burial vault collapses at Dallas-area funeral home

A worker died after being trapped beneath a burial vault at a cemetery in the Dallas, Texas area, according to officials.

Emergency crews were called at about 2:06 p.m. Monday to 13005 Greenville Avenue after reports that a burial vault had fallen on a worker, according to Dallas Fire-Rescue. When firefighters arrived, they found the man pinned from the waist down.

A burial vault is a reinforced container that surrounds a casket underground to prevent the grave from collapsing and protect it from soil and water.

Although the department’s Urban Search and Rescue team was dispatched as a precaution, the first arriving unit was able to lift the vault using hydraulic spreaders and air bags to free him. He was taken to a local hospital with serious injuries to his lower body.

Dallas Fire-Rescue later confirmed that the man died from his injuries. His identity has not been released.

The incident occurred at Restland Funeral Home, Cemetery & Crematory, located near the boundary between Dallas and Richardson.