Report: Boston tunnel warning came in 1999

AP via Yahoo ^ | 7/26/2006 | AP

[Incorrigible]

Report: Boston tunnel warning came in 1999

Wed Jul 26, 9:07 AM ET

BOSTON - The on-site safety officer for a Big Dig highway tunnel where a motorist was crushed by falling concrete warned his superiors in 1999 that the heavy ceiling panels might collapse because the bolts could not support them, The Boston Globe reported Wednesday.

John Keaveney wrote in a two-page memo to a senior project manager for contractor Modern Continental Construction Co. that he could not "comprehend how this structure can withhold the test of time."

"Should any innocent State Worker or member of the Public be seriously injured or even worse killed as a result, I feel that this would be something that would reflect Mentally and Emotionally upon me, and all who are trying to construct a quality Project," he wrote.

In an interview with the Globe, Keaveney said his superiors at Modern Continental and representatives from Big Dig project manager Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff assured him that such a system had been tested and was proven to work.

Andrew Paven, a spokesman for Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff, declined to comment on the report Wednesday.

Modern Continental had no specific comment Wednesday. A spokesman referred to an earlier statement in which the company said it was cooperating fully and was confident the work fully complied with plans and specifications.

The tunnel where the woman was killed is part of Interstate 90 that the $14.6 billion Big Dig project buried under south Boston. It leads to the Ted Williams Tunnel, which runs under Boston Harbor to Logan Airport.

Both tunnels, as well as ramps, were closed to most traffic after the ceiling panels collapsed and inspectors discovered hundreds of problem bolts in their ceilings.

Investigators have been focusing their attention on the bolt-and-epoxy system holding up the ceiling panels, which weigh about 3 tons in the portion of the tunnel where the ceiling collapsed.

Keaveney told the Globe his memo reflected collective concerns among ironworkers installing the ceiling and other Modern Continental employees.

He wrote that the weight of the suspended panels appeared to be "excessive," given that the bolts were "only inserted into concrete with epoxy."

He also wrote that while workers were following specifications, he worried that when the state took control of the tunnel, maintenance might be neglected.

"My concerns are for that of the State when they assume control. They have a record of poor maintenance, and I just can envision that these sections will not receive the constant vigilance it would require," he wrote.

Keaveney, 43, was paid a salary of $70,000 as the head of on-site safety in the I-90 connector. The letter was mailed to a Globe reporter without his knowledge.

Keaveney said his worry increased a school group from his hometown toured part of the Big Dig project in 1999. He showed them some concrete ceiling panels and pointed to the bolts in the ceiling, explaining that the panels would one day hang from those bolts.

He said a third-grade girl raised her hand and asked: "Will those things hold up the concrete?"

Keaveney said he shared his concerns with colleagues and then managers. "It was like the (third-graders) had pointed out the emperor has no clothes," he said.

Not for commercial use.  For educational and discussion purposes only.

[Incorrigible]

What did John Kerry know and when did he know it?

[Mo1]

Kerry and Kennedy only cared about getting the money for this pig of a project

They didn't care about anything else

[RightWhale]

Is there any public project anywhere any time that didn't have a warning by somebody or other?

[spintreebob]

As long as I can remember, the Big-Dig has been a joke on Leno-Letterman, talkradio, and in color comments on pro-sports broadcasts.

From Day-1 it has always been labeled a pork barrel project given to incompetents.

[Incorrigible]

In this photograph released the Office of Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a loose bolt is shown supporting a ceiling panel attached to the roof of the westbound entrance to the Ted Williams Tunnel in Boston, Tuesday July 25, 2006. Authorities diverted traffic around the questionable panel and shored it up with a portable support device in the tunnel, which extends Interstate 90 between downtown Boston and Logan International Airport. Parts of the tunnel have been closed since falling concrete killed a motorist on July 10. (AP Photo/State of Massachusetts Governor's Office)

Cars go through the Ted Williams Tunnel in Boston, Tuesday, July 25, 2006. The latest issue to arise was in the westbound entrance to the Ted Williams Tunnel, where inspectors on Monday found three loose bolts in a ceiling panel. Authorities diverted traffic around the questionable panel and shored it up with a portable support in the tunnel, which extends Interstate 90 between downtown Boston and Logan International Airport. (AP Photo/Chitose Suzuki)

 

[Thebaddog]

It would be interesting to review the records to see if the memo was reviewed and commented on in the proper channels and where the "don't worry" response came from. Or it could be a CYA memo buried in the files for self preservation. Who knows?

[the invisib1e hand]

soon to be swept under the rug: "Tunnelgate."

[jiggyboy]

Mr. Keaveney will do well to pay one of the kids from the neighborhood to check his ignition and brake fluid on a regular basis for the next couple of years. An upgrade to his windows and front door and the addition of a sprinkler system to his house would also be in order.

[johnny7]

“ ...those who were sometimes critical of this project, those who
worried about its cost, are going to look back and they're not going to see the cost...
the fact is, this tunnel will be a bargain.”

John Francois Kerry

[Fudd]

The Big Dig:

Innocents Killed.

Billions of Dollars Wasted.

No Exit Strategy.

U.S. Must Pull Out Of Boston Quagmire NOW!!

[Arcy]

Kerry & Kennedy knew about dangers and chose to ignore them to the detriment of innocent motorists.

What a shame that as Kennedy & Kerry lounge in the comfort of their secluded abodes sipping aged scotch and snipping the ends of Cohibas given as gifts from transportation lobbyists, the everyday Bostonian is subjecting themselves to what amounts to "Russian-Roulette" as they travel to-and-fro in an effort to pay the exorbitant income tax heaped upon them by the same two stooges; all the while hoping to have enough left to put food on the table for their hungary babies back home.

They're risking life and limb as 10-ton concrete slabs held by structurally inadequate anchor bolts dangle over their very heads hoping this trip won't be "the one" that kills them.

Sleep easy Bostonian's, Kennedy & Kerry are "on the case" and are working feverishly to hide the evidence. They have your deepest concerns at heart; especially Kennedy, he knows (or has seen) what it's like to trapped in a car unable to get out.

[Young Werther]

...and President Bush did absolutely nothing!

[Rippin]

Impact on Boston Real Estate? I sure wouldn't move there with the potential this has for huge costs the feds might not pick up and the possible disruptions. Plus it just confirms how corrupt the place is. Who would go there voluntarily?

[bruin66]

Dig project manager Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff

I'll bet it was really (gasp) Halliburton.