Big Dig highway problems will take months to fix
Boston – Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said Sunday that it would take months to fix problems in the entire Big Dig highway system and reopen the roads, and another ramp was closed to traffic because of what he called a “systemic failure.”
The work in the tunnel closed Sunday, a quarter-mile-long ramp, is expected to last at least several days and comes nearly a week after the collapse that crushed a car carrying Milena Del Valle, 38.
The closure was ordered because of potential problems with 40 of the bolts that hold up the heavy ceiling panels, Romney said. Testing on the bolts has shown that “what happened last week was not an anomaly but a systemic failure,” Romney said.
Since Del Valle’s death July 10, motorists had been using the now-closed ramp as a detour around the accident scene.
Twelve tons of concrete ceiling panels crushed the passenger side of the car being driven by Del Valle’s husband, Angel Del Valle, as they headed to Logan International Airport.
Each of the concrete slabs suspended above the roadway weighs 3 tons. In some cases, inspectors have found ceiling bolts pulled as much as three-eighths of an inch away from the concrete roof.
The $14.6 billion Big Dig buried the old elevated Central Artery that used to slice through the city, replacing it with a series of tunnels.
REDWOOD CITY, Calif.
Peterson murder case ready for appeals
The transcript of Scott Peterson’s murder trial was certified as accurate, opening the way for numerous expected appeals that could last years.
The Friday hearing was likely the last step of the case in San Mateo County.
Peterson, 33, was convicted in November 2004 of killing Laci Peterson and her fetus. Now living on death row at San Quentin State Prison, he has always maintained that someone else was responsible for the crime.
Laci Peterson was eight months pregnant when her husband reported her missing on Christmas Eve 2002. At his trial, prosecutors argued that he strangled her at the couple’s home in Modesto before dumping her body in San Francisco Bay.
NEW YORK
Ground zero bone searches criticized
Scores of people rallied at ground zero Saturday to remember the fallen, and call for a more thorough search for the bone fragments still being found at the World Trade Center site.
Activists have said they aren’t convinced that enough is being done to recover any small bits of remains that might still be hidden among other debris at the vacant Deutsche Bank building, which was damaged beyond repair in the Trade Center collapse.
More than 600 human bone fragments have been found on the 41-story tower. A majority were on the roof.
Ellen Borakove, spokeswoman for the medical examiner, said the city’s methods are careful and thorough. She invited families to appoint their own specialist to observe the search.
NEWPORT, Ore.
Tuna fishers rescued after boat sinks at sea
Three men survived 6 1/2 hours in the Pacific Ocean by clinging to an ice chest after their boat sank about 45 miles off the Oregon coast, the Coast Guard said.
Only one was wearing a life jacket when a Coast Guard helicopter lifted them from the 65-degree water Friday evening.
The search for the men, who were fishing for tuna, began about 1:30 p.m. when the Coast Guard received a call for help. Four helicopters, a plane and two rescue boats responded. The men were found about 8 p.m.
The boat’s owner, Bob Templin, 53, said he was treated and released from a hospital but was unwilling to speak about the incident. He said his two friends were in the hospital.
“He’s a lucky man,” Templin’s wife, Anne, said.
TEHRAN
Iran says it’s ready for nuclear talks
Iran said Sunday that Western incentives to halt its nuclear program were an “acceptable basis” for talks, and it is ready for detailed negotiations.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice responded that Iran should talk directly to negotiators if it wants to discuss the six-nation proposal.
Frustrated world powers agreed Wednesday to send Iran to the U.N. Security Council for possible punishment, saying Tehran had given no sign it would bargain in earnest over its nuclear ambitions.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi said in Tehran that “we consider this package an appropriate basis, an acceptable basis (for talks).”
“Now is an appropriate opportunity for Iran and Europe to enter detailed negotiations,” he said. “Sending the dossier to the U.N. Security Council means blocking and rejecting talks.”
KABUL, Afghanistan
Anti-Taliban coalition sees no end to mission
There is no end in sight for a massive anti-Taliban offensive in southern Afghanistan, the U.S.-led coalition said Sunday.
More than 10,000 soldiers have fanned out across mountain ranges, desert plains and opium fields to crush the Taliban in Operation Mountain Thrust.
“The purpose of doing that is so we can extend the authority of the government … in areas where the government hasn’t been in years,” said Col. Tom Collins, chief U.S. spokesman in Kabul. “Because of that, there is no end date per se to Mountain Thrust.”
American, British and Canadian troops have inflicted large numbers of casualties in recent days. More than 70 Taliban were killed in 24 hours of violence.
Insurgent roadside bombings and a suicide attack killed 10 Afghan troops and civilians. A coalition soldier was fatally wounded fighting insurgents Sunday in Zabul province, the U.S. military said. His nationality and identity were not immediately released.
PANAMA CITY, Panama
Panama Canal may add more locks
Panamanians will vote Oct. 22 on whether to undertake the biggest modification to the Panama Canal since it was opened in 1914.
President Martin Torrijos will sign the bill approving the canal referendum today, his office reported Sunday.
The $5.3 billion project would add a third set of locks on the canal to reduce the long lines of ships trying to cross and allow larger ships to pass through.
