The New York Times-20080124-2 Big Dig Companies to Pay --36-407 Million for Repairs
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2 Big Dig Companies to Pay $407 Million for Repairs
The two companies that managed the design and construction of the costly Big Dig project here will pay more than $400 million in an agreement with the government over leaky tunnels and a fatal ceiling collapse.
State and federal officials said Wednesday that the companies, the Bechtel Infrastructure Corporation and Parsons Brinckerhoff, had acknowledged oversight failures and agreed to pay the state and federal governments $407 million. Several smaller companies will pay an additional $51 million, they said.
Michael J. Sullivan, the United States attorney in Boston, called the agreement evidence of our commitment to vigorously investigate and prosecute those who have perpetrated a fraud on American taxpayers. The Big Dig, long considered the nation's most complex highway project, has cost about $15 billion over nearly two decades.
In a statement, John MacDonald, chairman of the Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff joint venture, said, We understand and acknowledge with this resolution that our performance did not meet our commitment to the public or our own expectations.
While the project is considered a feat of engineering, replacing an ugly elevated highway through Boston with underground tunnels, it has been plagued with problems. A breach sent water gushing through one tunnel in 2004, and since then, workers have discovered hundreds of other leaks.
The most serious problem came in 2006, when concrete ceiling panels collapsed and killed a woman driving through a tunnel to Logan International Airport. The family of the woman, Milena Del Valle, 39, has sued Bechtel, Parsons Brinckerhoff and other companies, and while that case is still pending, state officials said the settlement would protect other motorists.
No other family will have to go through what the family of Milena Del Valle has gone through, said Attorney General Martha Coakley, adding that the agreement was the best that we believe we humanly could have done.
Most of the $458 million will be placed in a fund to pay for nonroutine repairs on the Big Dig. Under the agreement terms, Bechtel and Parsons Brinckerhoff can still be held liable for any catastrophic events that cause more than $50 million in damages over the next decade.
The companies must also conduct an investigation and tell the federal and state governments if it reveals any construction defects that could lead to something as serious as the 2006 collapse.
Mr. Sullivan said Bechtel and Parsons Brinckerhoff had made about $150 million on the project over two decades. They lost money, clearly, at the end of the day, he said. They're the ones who should have identified these incidents, and there were a number of red flags along the way.
Ms. Coakley said she had decided not to pursue criminal charges against the companies because under state law, the harshest punishment would have been a $1,000 fine. Prosecutors also ruled out trying to bar the companies from receiving government contracts, she said.
Knowing what we know -- that there are leaks, that there will be wear and tear -- we need this agreement and this money going forth, she said.
Ms. Del Valle's husband, Angel, and their three children have filed suit against more than a dozen contractors and agencies. One, the epoxy supplier blamed in the collapse, Powers Fasteners, has agreed to pay $6 million. Powers Fasteners was indicted on a manslaughter charge last summer; the company has denied wrongdoing.
Bradley Henry, a lawyer representing the Del Valle family, said members hoped the companies would now focus on resolving their claims against them.
Any kind of a resolution relating to the accident is at best bittersweet, Mr. Henry said. But the settlement is a clear indication of the scope and extent of responsibility for the collapse on the part of Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff.
[Illustration]PHOTO: The project manager will not face criminal charges in the death of a 39-year-old woman killed in a ceiling collapse in July 2006. (PHOTOGRAPH BY MICHAEL DWYER/ASSOCIATED PRESS)