Big Dig ceiling collapse
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At approximately 11:00 p.m. on Monday, July 10, 2006, four sections of ceiling tiles fell to the roadway on eastbound I-90, along a section of connector tunnel that leads to the Ted Williams Tunnel in South Boston. The cement panel tiles, each weighing around three tons, crushed a car passing underneath, killing the passenger, 38-year-old Milena Del Valle, and slightly injuring the driver, Angel Del Valle.
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[edit] Immediate aftermath and fallout
Calling the area a crime scene, Attorney General Tom Reilly issued subpoenas to those involved in the construction and testing of the tunnels in which criminal charges may follow. Governor Mitt Romney returned from a vacation in New Hampshire to view the condition of the tunnels.[1][2] The collapse of the ceiling structure began with the failure of a single steel hanger that held up the panels. The failure of that panel set off a chain reaction that caused other hangers to fail and sent 12 tons of concrete to the roadway below.
The Governor has ordered the closure of connectors that lead into the Ted Williams Tunnel and several ramps to the westbound section from inside the city, spurring dramatic overflow congestion throughout the city as motorists seek alternate routes to and from Logan International Airport and several other key arterials. Beyond the difficulties posed within the city, the Ted Williams Tunnel links the Massachusetts Turnpike and Interstate 93 to Logan, so this has also blocked a key inbound link for airport travelers coming from outside the city, forcing them to seek alternate routes or follow poorly marked detours that wind through the city, often resulting in additional travel times of one hour or more.
The legislature approved the governor's plan to assume oversight of the investigation into the collapse, taking responsibility away from the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, and additionally allocating $20 million for a "stem to stern" safety review of the Central Artery system. At the request of all the members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation, the National Transportation Safety Board dispatched a six-member civil engineering team to Boston to inspect the accident scene and determine whether a full-scale investigation is warranted.
Those safety inspections ultimately identified 242 potentially dangerous bolt fixtures that support the ceiling tiles in the Interstate 90 connector tunnel. [3] As problems throughout the tunnels are identified, various sections of roadway are closing and re-opening as deemed appropriate.[4] The most recent concerns to be aired include ceiling fans, weighing approximately three tons each, to circulate air throughout the tunnel system.[5]
[edit] Political fallout
On July 13, 2006, the leaders of the state legislature, Senate President Robert Travaglini and House Speaker Sal Dimasi called upon Turnpike Authority chairman Matthew J. Amorello, who provides oversight of the project, to consider stepping down from his position and accepting a diminished role.[6] Governor Romney and Attorney General Reilly both called for the resignation of Amorello. This stance was supported in editorials in Boston's two major newspapers, the Boston Herald[7] and the Boston Globe.[8] On July 18, Amorello was presented with a formal list of charges that Romney intended to use to justify Amorello's removal.[9]
Amorello made an unsuccessful effort to ask the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to postpone the removal hearing before Romney.[10] On July 27, 2006, after the Supreme Judicial Court rejected his request and shortly before the hearing was to have begun, Armorello announced his intention to resign as Chairman of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority effective August 15, 2006.
Romney and Reilly have garnered criticism from the media for accepting campaign contributions from Big Dig contractors and for not taking more action prior to the fatal accident. Modern Continental was the contractor that built this section following a design by Gannett Fleming Inc.[11]
[edit] Was this event foreseeable?
Numerous problems with this same system of bolts and epoxy in the Ted Williams Tunnel were revealed in a 1998 (Massachusetts) Office of the Inspector General report. Not only were the bolts too short, but the epoxy used to glue the bolts into the concrete was not up to standard.[12] The state Turnpike Authority (citing the existence of an ongoing criminal investigation into the tunnel ceiling collapse) and the Federal Highway Administration have refused requests[citation needed] to release documents relating to the work conducted along the Seaport connector, including:
- Deficiency reports that would have shown problems flagged during initial work on the tunnel.
- Construction change orders that would have shown costly repairs and contract revisions that occurred because of deficiencies.
- Inspection reports and other documents that would show who would have knowledge of the workmanship and building material quality.
Likewise, just one year earlier, U.S. Representative Stephen Lynch had trouble obtaining records regarding the Big Dig tunnel leaks for the Congress' Committee on Government Oversight. [13]
[edit] Lawsuits
On August 30, 2006, Angel Del Valle filed a lawsuit on the behalf of his deceased wife against the Mass. Turnpike Authority and the contractors of the Big Dig. The lawsuit states that the MTA and Contractors put profit ahead of safety in the construction of the Big Dig tunnels. They plan to use any money won from the lawsuit to build homes for Milena Del Valle's family in Costa Rica, an ice cream shop and as donations to the poor. [14]
On November 27th 2006, departing Attorney General Tom Reilly announced the state will launch a civil suit over the collapse of the ceiling in the Ted Williams Tunnel. The Commonwealth will be seeking over $150 million dollars from project manager Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff, builder Modern Continental Construction Co. and the manufacturer of the epoxy used to hold the ceiling bolts.[15]
Attorney General Martha Coakley on March 1st 2007 named Paul Ware from Goodwin Procter, a Boston law firm to lead the criminal investigation into whether there is criminal culpability in the Big Dig tunnel collapse. Paul Ware will be appointed as a special assistant attorney general.[16]
