This graphic in today’s Boston Globe is absolutely terrifying. Look at it. Absolutely nothing is holding those three-ton ceiling panels in place except glue. Somehow it doesn’t make me feel better that this type of system may be in use all across the country.
Nor does it help to learn that the only purpose in installing the panels may have been aesthetic, to hide ugly ceiling fans; or that much lighter panels could have been used, but were rejected because it would have been harder to keep them from vibrating. And don’t forget: There are at least 60 more of these bolts that are flawed.
The Boston Herald today is taking credit for its Tuesday online exclusive, which reported that Monday night’s fatal accident was due to an adhesive failure. The Herald is also a good example of how a tabloid can focus and reflect public outrage at a moment like this. While the Globe goes with a strong, newsy front, the Herald goes with pure emotion.
The page is dominated by a big splash reading “BIG DIG DISGRACE” and a photo o
f Milena and Angel Del Valle. The subheads: “Officials stonewall on Hub tunnel tragedy”; “Mitt grandstands, then returns to vacation”; “We get silent treatment from Bechtel.”
Granted, these are mini-editorials, not news headlines. But given the Herald’s mission as the city’s feisty, number-two daily, I think they’re absolutely justified.
Universal Hub has been gathering up blog commentary here.
Discover more from Media Nation
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
I’m not going to defend the shoddy workmanship and poor design that seems (emphasis on “seems”) rampant throughout the Big Dig. However, I wouldn’t be so quick to judge on the bolt-in-glue concept. I’m not a structural engineer, but I know enough about engineering to know that when it comes to dealing with massive amounts of stress, weight, and torque…things often can seem counter-intuitive. A great example that always comes to my mind is the first ever Ferris Wheel in the late 1800’s. It proved very popular but scared the crap out of a lot of people because it was TOO well engineered; the 200+ft-high structure looked fragile because it depended on thousands of small, thin strands of cable to distribute the load evenly.I do, however, agree that hanging multi-ton panels from the ceiling purely for aesthetic reasons does seem mighty dumb. Especially since it wasn’t really in the original design/construction so it had to be half-assed in mid-project.Talking politics for a moment, I wonder about two points: first, am I alone in thinking that Amorello could well end up in prison over this? The man’s got “scapegoat” tattooed all over him now, and Bechtel is going to do everything they can to make sure it stays that way. Second, I really hope that during the Presidential campaign someone grills Romney for his blatant use of a woman’s death to further his own political agenda. He seems to be setting himself up as the “It’s not my fault” candidate…it’s not his fault he couldn’t get Amorello out before this tragedy occurred, it’s not his fault he couldn’t defeat gay marriage, it’s not his fault his attorney general has sucked big time at cost recovery on the Big Dig. Ain’t the buck supposed to stop at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue?
The Herald and its dim witted half brother – local talk radio – has certainly given this topic 150% of coverage, but when it comes to the AM side of things, there has been a lot of breathless hyperbole, exageration and just plain wrong reporting from the newspaper columnist / yakker front. Callahan, Carr and Eagen all were chest thumping the front page photo in yesterday’s Herald as the ” moment of impact ” as the car is crushed. Reading the text, however, particularly the account of the accident scene as given by the arriving fire – EMTs clarifies the situation. The image certainly is of the accident but could have been taken any number of minutes after the collapse, as following traffic snaked through the open lanes. It’s a great image and the Herald deserves full credit for the scoop but let’s not get toooo carried away.
Whoa, Dan. You are ignoring what some of us would find compelling counter-arguments that were explicitly stated in the Globe article, most important, that this type of structure is fairly common in the U.S. and that this is the first known failure.And at least one person noted to the Globe that the heavy panels were there to counter vibration and other potential hazardous conditions, not (just) aesthetics.I think today’s Globe did a good job of presenting both sides of the questions over the ceiling’s engineering, although if memory serves those who took issue with it to the Globe went unnamed, which makes me think that they might not have been engineers. Finally, let’s remember that many, many persons were involved in the building of these tunnels. There’s been something of a leap to assume that everyone was busy lining their pockets and not following good engineering or building practices. It’s hard for me to believe that everyone involved in the Big Dig project was out to screw the taxpayers and didn’t care about public safety. It’s not like B-D imported all the crews; if the construction guys were cutting corners, they had to know that the potential consequences could affect someone they knew.
I’m no reflexive fan of Purcell or The Herald (formerly working for CNC cured me of that pretty fast), but I agree that it’s essential to have a feisty second point of view and The Herald has done a great job on this story. So has The Globe, but you have to be pretty engaged to follow all its details. The Herald grabs your eyeballs and conveys the essentials very efficiently.
Mike –I think you’re misreading both me and the Globe.1. I acknowledge that this type of construction is used elsewhere, writing, “Somehow it doesn’t make me feel better that this type of system may be in use all across the country.” (Although it’s not clear to me that this system is used to hold up three-ton slabs of concrete all across the country.)2. The Globe reports that the heavy slabs are less likely to vibrate than lighter material, and thus would be safer — except that, apparently, the slabs aren’t needed at all. Read this, from a Globe story I did not link to earlier: “Now that the concrete panels are all being removed from the connector tunnel as part of the safety review, Turnpike Authority chairman Matthew J. Amorello has said he will consider reopening the tunnel without any drop ceiling at all. Some industry observers have said all along that the drop ceiling was mainly cosmetic, concealing the fans from the drivers below.”Finally, concerning your comment about corruption, I tend to agree with Christy Mihos, if I understand what he’s saying. That is, we’re not talking about corruption per se. Rather, we’re talking about officials pushing too hard to finish a project that was years late and billions of dollars over budget.
Dan, I’m certainly not misreading the Globe here. I did see the comment about the panels being a cosmetic front to hide the ugly fans from motorists below (of course, the Globe doesn’t say exactly who said that; just “some industry observers,” whatever the hell that means), as well as the comment that they might not be needed. However, in that same Scott Allen piece is the counter opinion from Mass. Big Dig project manager Michael P. Lewis that the panels are necessary, which is why I wrote earlier that “at least one person noted … that the heavy panels were there to counter vibration and other potential hazardous conditions, not (just) aesthetics.” My reading of your comments to start this thread suggest you feel the panels are unnecessary (your quote: “Nor does it help to learn that the only purpose in installing the panels may have been aesthetic, to hide ugly ceiling fans; or that much lighter panels could have been used, but were rejected because it would have been harder to keep them from vibrating.”). As far as I know, you aren’t an engineer, nor have you examined the data supporting the tunnel design/build. I see various project managers debating whether the design was the right one, but no one is claiming that it was the wrong one. “Cosmetic” isn’t the same as “unsafe,” and even James Bruno said that when he came to the prject he didn’t think the heavy panels were necessary, that they were properly installed and tested.Based on this, it’s premature to start drawing conclusions as to whether they were necessary.
Mike — I really think you’re misreading this. Here is what you’re talking about from the Globe story:”But Michael P. Lewis, the state’s Big Dig project manager, said during a press conference yesterday that the panels in the I-90 connector needed to be heavy for stability in the face of ‘hurricane force winds’ generated by fans near the roof of the tunnel. In an emergency, such as a tunnel fire, Lewis said, the fans would be turned up to maximum velocity to bring in fresh air, requiring a heavy drop ceiling that would not vibrate.”Here’s how I read that: If you’re going to have a drop ceiling, then it has to be heavy. Period. I don’t see Lewis expressing any opinion as to whether you need a drop ceiling in the first place.Amorello has already said several times now that the Pike may just remove the drop ceiling rather than take the risk. Who is his #1 adviser? Lewis.
Since you put it that way, perhaps I am misreading what Lewis is saying. I don’t think the article is entirely clear as to whether Lewis believes the panels were needed in the first place. But it seems a stretch to think that the state’s own project manager did not feel the design was necessary, don’t you think?As for Amorello, per the Globe he said he would consider reopening the tunnel without the panels, which is not the same as saying the panels are not needed at all.
Mike — As much expertise as Lewis may have, he didn’t design the project. That was mainly Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff. Lewis may have believed the design was safe — as the Globe, you, and I have all taken note of, it apparently is not a novel concept. (Although I’m still waiting to hear whether it’s used to hold up three-ton slabs anywhere else.) Given that, he may just have gone along with it as a nice aesthetic touch. After all, it will be pretty ugly without the slabs.
Now that the slab issue has been examined, I think the bigger picture is a project where safety is trusted to “best efforts” in a state where corruption and stupidity are allowed to fester like nowhere outside of Louisiana. It’s not so much whether “everybody” is crooked. We’re screwed (inside the tunnels at least) if ANYBODY is crooked. (Notice you don’t hear Bostonians making fun of New Orleans politicians anymore? Hits too close to home, I fear).
rick, if your hypothesis is correct, how does that make mass. unique? Every state has tunnels. Every state has the same potential for problems. When I lived in Chicago in the 1990s, the city dug up miles of streets to examine the concrete and other materials used, in search of evidence of shortcuts.We are hardly alone in all this. Reputation exceeds reality, I’m afraid.
if you listen to a useful audio interview on the herald web site today conducted with the author of the book “Big Dig” you’ll hear that the ceiling panels are intended to guide hurricane force winds generated by immense fans in the event of a calamity like an explosion or horrific fire in the tunnel that leads to heavy smoke and fumes. the fans would flush these gales of air along the 4-foot-high venting spaces above the concrete panels, and in doing so bad air would be sucked from the tunnel floor through plenums cut into the dropped ceiling panels, and whisked out of the tunnel. without the panels and the large venting area they enclose, the air would have to be flushed through the tunnel itself, likely overturning cars and blowing humans around like paper dolls. heavy concrete is used instead of say fiberglass or saran wrap because they withstand the vibrations better. of course, if they are not affixed well to being with, the whole house of cards is pretty well doomed. but in theory at least the venting area makes sense and concrete is needed in event of worst-case scenario.
if you listen to a useful audio interview on the herald web site today conducted with the author of the book “Big Dig” you’ll hear that the ceiling panels are intended to guide hurricane force winds generated by immense fans in the event of a calamity like an explosion or horrific fire in the tunnel that leads to heavy smoke and fumes. the fans would flush these gales of air along the 4-foot-high venting spaces above the concrete panels, and in doing so bad air would be sucked from the tunnel floor through plenums cut into the dropped ceiling panels, and whisked out of the tunnel. without the panels and the large venting area they enclose, the air would have to be flushed through the tunnel itself, likely overturning cars and blowing humans around like paper dolls. heavy concrete is used instead of say fiberglass or saran wrap because they withstand the vibrations better. of course, if they are not affixed well to being with, the whole house of cards is pretty well doomed. but in theory at least the venting area makes sense and concrete is needed in event of worst-case scenario.