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,” said Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reill. “No one is going to be spared.”
The accident about 11 p.m. Monday was near the entrance to the Ted Williams Tunnel, which runs under Boston Harbor to Logan International Airport.
The driver of the crushed car managed to crawl through a window to safety, but his wife died when four massive concrete ceiling panels fell on the vehicle.
Gov. Mitt Romney said Tuesday he is taking legal action to oust the head of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, comparing the situation to the replacement of former Federal Emergency Management Agency chief Michael Brown after Hurricane Katrina.
“People should not have to drive through the Turnpike tunnels with their fingers crossed,” Romney said. “Neither I nor anyone else could be or should be satisfied until we have new leadership at the Turnpike authority.”
Massachusetts Turnpike Authority Chairman Matthew Amorello said a steel “tieback” that had held a 40-foot section of ceiling over eastbound Interstate 90 gave way, letting the concrete slabs loose as the car drove beneath them.
“We feel awful about what happened last night,” Amorello said.
