By Ken Maguire, Associated Press Writer | July 11, 2006
BOSTON --At least 12 tons of concrete fell from the ceiling of one of
Boston's Big Dig tunnels, crushing a woman in a car and again raising
concerns about the integrity of the massive highway project that is
the central artery through the city.
A steel tieback that held a 40-foot ceiling section over Interstate
90 eastbound gave way late Monday night in the tunnel, a main access
way to Boston's Logan International Airport. The tunnel was closed
indefinitely as crews worked to remove about 30 ceiling slabs in a
200-foot section where the collapse occurred, Authority Chairman
Matthew Amorello said Tuesday.
Milena Delvalle, 38, of Boston's Jamaica Plain section, was
pronounced dead at the scene. Angel Delvalle, 46, managed to crawl
out a window of their crushed car with less than a foot of clearance
and suffered minor injuries, according to State Police.
Their car was partially crushed under at least four ceiling panels,
each weighing 3 tons. The vehicle was in the left lane, giving the
driver's side more protection as panels came to rest also on a left-
side service walkway that is elevated several feet above the road.
Milena Delvalle was a native of Costa Rica, and the two were
newlyweds. They were on the way to the airport to pick up his brother
and sister in law, who had been vacationing in his native Puerto Rico.
"We feel awful about what happened last night," Amorello said. "It's
an awful, awful tragedy. ... This is an awful situation that occurred."
Amorello appointed a state police major, two outside consultants and
a team from the Federal Highway Administration to assist in the
investigation. The accident happened near the entrance to the Ted
Williams Tunnel, which goes under the Boston Harbor to the airport.
He said he had ordered a precautionary inspection of the Williams
Tunnel, which has similar tiebacks but a different ceiling structure.
Amorello also said that tiebacks similar to the one that failed were
used in 17 spots on the Interstate 90 section of the Big Dig project,
and all those were being checked.
"I don't think anyone can feel the tunnels are safe, given what
happened this morning," Gov. Mitt Romney told a New England Cable
News reporter after touring the accident site.
Amorello said he hoped the eastbound side of the closed tunnel could
be reopened by midday Wednesday.
"Any responsible party will be held accountable for what happened,"
Amorello said. "This is an unacceptable, horrible tragedy."
The accident caused huge traffic problems, with backups of several
miles on many roadways into the city. Motorists trying to get to and
from the airport were particularly affected. Traffic headed east to
Logan was detoured through the Callahan Tunnel, and westbound traffic
exiting the Ted Williams Tunnel was detoured through the city's South
Boston neighborhood.
Officials urged commuters and airport travelers to use public transit
-- particularly trains or boats -- to get to the airport or into the
city.
The ceiling panels were erected in 1999 and the contractor was Modern
Continental, Amorello said.
In that section, the tiebacks are bolted to a concrete ceiling. Above
it is an industrial area of South Boston home to the Boston
Convention Center and the World Trade Center.
Modern Continental and a spokesman for project manager Bechtel/
Parsons Brinckerhoff did not respond to calls for comment Tuesday.
The $14.6 billion Big Dig highway project, which buried Interstate 93
beneath downtown and extended the Turnpike to the airport, has been
criticized for construction problems and cost overruns that state
officials have said did not compromise safety.
There have been water leaks in parts of the tunnel system and at
least one incident when smaller amounts of dirt and debris from an
airshaft in another section of the tunnel system fell onto travel
lanes, causing minor damage to cars.
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.
Amorello said preliminary investigation shows that the quality of the
concrete was not to blame for the fatal accident Monday night.
Boston Mayor Tom Menino called for a third-party investigation and
quick answers to restore confidence in people traveling in Boston.
"We don't need a six-month study. We need an immediate reaction and
action by the different authorities so that we can reassure the
public as they drive into the city or drive over to the airport that
the tunnel is safe to go through," he said.
Christy Mihos, an independent candidate for governor and former
member of the Turnpike Authority Board and agency critic, called the
accident "my worst nightmare come true." He renewed his call for the
attorney general to immediately cease any negotiations with Big Dig
contractors over construction overcharges and urged the governor to
seize control of the Turnpike's day-to-day operations.