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| Woman dead after Big Dig section falls |
| 2006-07-11 |
| Your tax dollars at work. A portion of the ceiling in the tunnel connecting Interstate 93 north to the Ted Williams Tunnel collapsed last night, cascading debris onto a passing car and killing a female passenger, authorities said this morning. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene but her husband managed to crawl out of the crumpled car, said state officials, who would not release their names. The man was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital. The ceiling collapsed at about 11 p.m. and immediately led to the shutdown of the tunnel by State Police as Boston firefighters worked to remove the woman from the vehicle, officials said. The tunnel system is part of the Big Dig construction project overseen by the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority. State Police said the tunnel was shut down to give engineers time to study the extent of the damage to the ceiling and to the roadway. On its website, the Turnpike Authority said that the I-90 east connector tunnel to the Ted Williams Tunnel is closed and that all traffic was being diverted at Exit 24. The Ted Williams Tunnel eastbound and the eastbound section of I-90 that is east of I-93 will likely be closed for this morning's commute, said Mariellen Burns, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority. She said the harbor tunnel westbound, I-90 west, and I-93 will be open. The episode was the latest in a series of problems for tunnels involved in the $14 billion Big Dig project. In April 2005, one day after federal officials declared the Big Dig's tunnels safe, rocks and other debris rained down from an overhead vent in the I-93 southbound tunnel in downtown Boston and damaged at least five vehicles, including an ambulance transporting a patient. The debris, which witnesses described as ranging from pebbles to rocks smaller than a golf ball, fell near the Purchase Street exit. It was not clear this morning whether the latest ceiling collapse was related to water leaks that have plagued the tunnels. In March 2005, Big Dig officials launched a survey of the roadway after a chunk of the material fell onto the I-93 breakdown lane. They reported then that water leaks in the Big Dig had damaged fireproofing material in at least 40 areas along the tunnel's ceiling. Most of the damaged areas, which typically measure about 2 square feet, were located near where the tunnel walls meet the roof. Big Dig officials stressed then that the tunnel was safe. "We've got to protect our phony baloney jobs, dammit!" In May, prosecutors charged six current and former employees of a concrete supplier with fraud for allegedly concealing that some concrete delivered to the Big Dig was not freshly mixed. State and federal officials said that long-term maintenance, not immediate safety, was the likely impact. I wouldn't worry. Another 14 billion should fix it up just fine. |
| Posted by:tu3031 |
| #15 heh thanks for the info tu SF is bad too, some of the inspectors expect bribes or they'll kill [figurative]you in planning, on inspections or on the next job. |
| Posted by: RD 2006-07-11 22:45 |
| #14 Romney's started the process. Since Amarello is the head of the Turnpike Authority, one of those "public-private partnership" hack heavens, he doesn't work at Romney's conveinience. Romney has to prove "gross mismanagement", or pack the Turnpike board to vote him out. Amarello, a lifetime state hack with the ultimate Mass hack job (outside of running Massport) has already said that he won't resign, knowing that Romney will need the Jaws of Life to get him outta there. What Romney has to hope is now that somebody's finally been killed by this thing is that all of Amarello's back covering friends in the State House decide it's not worth the political risk to fly top cover for him anymore. If that support's gone, Amarello may work a behind the scenes deal for some overinflated pension and quit. This is how Romney forced out Billy Bulger at UMASS. As far as Reilly goes, forget it. He couldn't solve a crime if it happened on his front porch. And there's your brief primer on the System in Massachusetts. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2006-07-11 22:29 |
| #13 In Massachusetts, construction is a "family" business. |
| Posted by: Fordesque 2006-07-11 22:21 |
| #12 oh, to perp-walk chappaquiddick. |
| Posted by: Whereth Flomoque5693 2006-07-11 18:37 |
| #11 BOSTON - At least 12 tons of concrete collapsed onto a passing car in a Big Dig tunnel, fatally crushing a newlywed and prompting renewed scrutiny Tuesday of the costliest highway project in U.S. history. The state attorney general said he plans to treat the site as a crime scene that could lead to charges of negligent homicide. The attorney general's office already has begun issuing subpoenas to those involved in the design, manufacturing, testing, construction and oversight of the panels and tunnel. "What we are looking at is anyone who had anything to do with what happened last night," Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly said. "No one is going to be spared." That sound you hear is shredders going into overdrive |
| Posted by: Steve 2006-07-11 17:41 |
| #10 Governor Romney has fired the bozo in charge of the project. Fired. Not "asked for resignation," not "paid administrative leave," not "reassigned"--flat-out canned him. |
| Posted by: Mike 2006-07-11 15:34 |
| #9 Look for, da union la-BEL,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, |
| Posted by: no mo uro 2006-07-11 14:44 |
| #8 a single tieback failure should never lead to a progressive collapse - there's a multitude of errors/fraudulent materials , etc. involved, I bet |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-07-11 12:25 |
| #7 Speaking of rebar and flyash.... |
| Posted by: 6 2006-07-11 11:43 |
| #6 union labor? someone's laughing all the way to the bank, in the Cayman Islands. |
| Posted by: Crouching Tiger 2006-07-11 11:26 |
| #5 I'd say it just went from $14 billion to $15 billion. |
| Posted by: Wheang Spavirong9833 2006-07-11 09:16 |
| #4 In the bluest commonwealth, perhaps. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-07-11 08:38 |
| #3 Weel, with quality construction like this, al qaeda can just sit back and watch infrastructure crumble. |
| Posted by: Ebbaviling Omaviger5166 2006-07-11 08:35 |
| #2 The first in a series. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-07-11 08:32 |
| #1 A portion of the ceiling in the tunnel connecting Interstate 93 north to the Ted Williams Tunnel collapsed last night, cascading debris onto a passing car and killing a female passenger, authorities said this morning. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene but her husband managed to crawl out of the crumpled car The snark in me is wanting to make some sort of comment about the tunnel batting .500 but I'll let it go. Big Dig officials stressed then that the tunnel was safe. Umm - No it isn't. Ya see, when a big piece of anything falls and kills someone, that is known as dangerous, not safe. Sheesh. |
| Posted by: GORT 2006-07-11 08:26 |