"Worries about lights were kept in the dark; Engineers knew corroded tunnel fixtures could signify real danger, but they moved slowly, secretly" July 10, 2011|By Sean P. Murphy and Scott Allen, Globe Staff
A few days after a 110-pound light fixture crashed from the ceiling of the Tip O’Neill tunnel onto one of the busiest roads in Boston, a highway crew made an alarming discovery: nine other lights in the sprawling Big Dig tunnels were hanging from supports so corroded that they could fail at any time, too.
The Big Dig already had a tragic experience with dangerous falling objects. A tunnel ceiling panel had collapsed in 2006, killing a woman a few hundred yards from where the nine corroded fixtures were discovered on Feb. 16.
See: The Price of a Massachusetts Life
That's it?
State engineers had no way of knowing how many more of the 25,000 lights in the Big Dig tunnels had become unstable - and plenty of reason to fear that corrosion was widespread after years of saltwater leaking into the tunnels.
All that money and debt interest for a pos.
But the engineers in charge kept quiet. They filed no written report. They didn’t brief their boss. And when they asked federal regulators for money to fix a corrosion problem that “could’’ lead to falling light fixtures, they didn’t disclose that one had already fallen.
Internal e-mails and Transportation Department reports obtained by the Globe show that last winter’s light fixture collapse presented a more hazardous situation than Secretary Jeffrey B. Mullan disclosed to the public, and one that could add $200 million to the already-gargantuan price of the Big Dig.
It is NOT JUST the MONEY, it is the LYING!!!!
State records also show that his agency’s attempt to solve the problem was both more secretive and sluggish than he admitted....
Which TELLS YOU TWO THINGS!
When GOVERNMENT MINIMIZES or IGNORES a PROBLEM it is SERIOUS!
When they PROCLAIM URGENCY about an issue you KNOW it is AGENDA-PUSHING GARBAGE!!
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Related: No Light at the End of This Boston Globe Tunnel
I don't see one.
"Legislators to press transportation chief; Response at issue in tunnel dangers" July 11, 2011|By Sean P. Murphy, Globe Staff
State legislative leaders yesterday demanded that the secretary of transportation answer tough questions about his agency’s reluctance to write down information that could have political or professional consequences, including engineers’ failure to document the fall of a 110-pound light fixture in one of the Big Dig tunnels in February.
Legislators promised to grill Secretary Jeffrey B. Mullan following disclosure in yesterday’s Globe that the engineer in charge of the 7.5-mile maze of Big Dig tunnels has avoided written reports since a 2006 ceiling collapse in one tunnel killed a woman, prompting massive lawsuits. The Globe obtained an internal consultant’s report worrying about a culture in the Transportation Department “where nobody says anything, even when they know they should.’’
That's AmeriKa in a nutshell.
Legislators said they also want to question Mullan over the extent of his withholding of key information about the light fixture dropping in the Thomas P. O’Neill tunnel Feb. 8, and the discovery days later that nine other lights were so corroded they were in immediate danger of falling.
“It’s troubling to hear people saying they don’t write things down because it might get them in trouble,’’ said Senator Thomas M. McGee, a Democrat of Lynn and a cochairman of the Transportation Committee. “Questions need to be answered.’’
Representative William Straus, a Democrat of Mattapoisett and cochairman of the Transportation Committee, focused on what the Globe termed a “culture of secrecy’’ at the agency.
Related:
The Perils of One-Party Politics: The Ruling Party
The Perils of One-Party Politics: Massachusetts' Democracy
Secret Statehouse
Fine ones to talk, 'eh?
Governor Deval Patrick, speaking through a spokesman, declined comment on the Globe’s report on Mullan’s management of the light fixture situation.
Mullan said in a statement, “The Globe’s story revisits some of our previously admitted mistakes from last winter. The story also demonstrates that we have more work to do in reforming the transportation culture.’’
“We have made progress [on maintenance] and the tunnels are safe,’’ the statement continued.
(Blog editor is aghast at the bald-faced lie in light -- pun intended -- of what has happened)
“Any inference that safety concerns in our tunnels … are neglected or not reported is false,’’ the statement said....
So he is pretty much calling the Globe a liar.
Mullan has presented shifting versions of what he knew about the situation and when he knew it.
Never good to see the press start talking about you that way.
He has also admitted he was wrong to have tried to justify his agency’s withholding for more than five weeks the fact that a light fell because he wanted to prevent a public panic.
And if a few had let loose and killed someone?
Then we are looking at CRIMINAL NEGLIGENCE, right?
Yesterday, Mullan said in the statement, “We have worked tirelessly to create a culture committed to safety and customer service at MassDOT with an unflinching commitment to openness and transparency.’’
(Once again blog editor is astounding by the flat-out f*** lie!!!)
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I suppose it IS ILLUMINATING to learn that your STATE GOVERNMENT is an INCORRIGIBLE LIAR!
Patrick voices support for Mullan, but wants answers
Governor Patrick said that he was troubled by a top Big Dig engineer’s declaration that state employees do not put problematic information in writing, apparently to avoid a paper trail that could trigger a lawsuit or damaging news stories
Sigh.
Mullan suspends Big Dig engineer
State transportation secretary Jeffrey B. Mullan suspended the Big Dig’s top engineer yesterday, less than a week after the engineer said that he and his colleagues were instructed years ago not to leave a paper trail documenting safety concerns within the tunnels.
So when is he going to resign?
And as if Bostonians needed a reminder:
"Hundreds stranded below in another T breakdown; Passengers wait hours before walking on tracks" July 13, 2011|By Laura J. Nelson and Eric Moskowitz, Globe Staff
CAMBRIDGE - More than 400 commuters were left stranded for hours aboard packed, muggy subway cars near Porter Square Station yesterday, triggering a carefully choreographed evacuation by foot through MBTA tunnels and spawning hours of delays across the Red Line.
Well, that's what happens when you dump all your revenue into debt service and interest payments to banks.
When a six-car train broke down about 9 a.m. in a tunnel just south of Porter and the train sent to rescue it also faltered, 447 marooned passengers waited at least two hours to be rescued. The cramped quarters and lack of cellphone service fostered an initial sense of helplessness, which then gave way to resigned camaraderie among the commuters, who shared bottled water and swapped stories about the haircuts, meetings, and job interviews they had missed....
Yeah, no big deal (sigh)!
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Related: Sunday Globe Commute
Also see:
Keeping up appearances is struggle at aging T stops
MBTA riders asked to weigh in on trains
Train crew rattled after emergency stop for man on tracks
Man threatens bus driver, strips naked in front of T station
Fun ride home, huh?
Next Day Updates:
Mullan to quit as chief of transit
Governor Deval Patrick’s embattled transportation secretary, Jeffrey B. Mullan, said he will step down by year’s end for personal reasons, a decision he said he conveyed to the administration in May.
