Powers Fasteners Arraigned On Manslaughter Charge In Connection With Big Dig Tunnel Collapse
By newsdesk - Posted on September 6th, 2007
September 05, 2007 -- BOSTON –Today, Powers Fasteners, Inc. (Powers), the company that marketed and distributed the epoxy anchor bolt system used in portions of the I-90 Connector Tunnel, was arraigned in connection with the July 10, 2006, ceiling panel collapse that killed Milena Del Valle, age 38, of Jamaica Plain. Powers, a Brewster, NY-based company, was charged with one count of involuntary manslaughter.
At approximately 11:00 p.m. on July 10, 2006, Milena Del Valle and her husband, Angel Del Valle were traveling through the I-90 Connector Tunnel in East Boston toward Logan International Airport when a suspended concrete ceiling panel collapsed on the vehicle, killing Ms. Del Valle and injuring her husband. Immediately following the collapse, the Attorney General’s Office, in collaboration with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Massachusetts State Police, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of the Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), began a criminal investigation into Ms. Del Valle’s death.
Over the course of the 13-month ongoing joint investigation, authorities learned that Powers’ epoxy was used to suspend the concrete ceiling in the section of the Connector Tunnel where the collapse occurred. Investigators further learned that the epoxy anchor system used was marketed and distributed by Powers Fasteners, Inc.
Working with federal authorities, including the U.S. Attorney’s Office, U.S. Department of Transportation Office of the Inspector General, the FBI, and the NTSB, investigators determined that the cause of the ceiling collapse was the use of Power-Fast Fast Set epoxy product in the anchor system. Specifically, the type of epoxy used was found to be unsuitable for sustained loads as it is susceptible to “creep”—a phenomenon whereby the anchors pull away from the ceiling over time.
As the investigation continued, investigators learned that Powers marketed two epoxy products, Power-Fast Fast Set epoxy, and Power-Fast Standard Set epoxy. Investigators found that Powers has known since at least 1991, when it first began marketing its Power-Fast Fast Set epoxy, that the Fast Set product was unsuitable for sustained loads based upon the corporation’s own “creep” testing. However, consistently since 1991, Powers’ marketing materials did not differentiate clearly between the two Power-Fast products, nor did they mention the Fast Set product’s susceptibility to “creep.”
Authorities determined that these materials were provided to tunnel project managers and engineers. In addition, investigators found that Powers did not make Bechtel/Parsons Brinkerhoff, Gannett Fleming, or Modern Continental aware of the difference between the Power-Fast Fast Set and Power-Fast Standard Set with respect to “creep” resistance, and therefore with respect to the suitability of the Fast Set epoxy for heavy ceiling panels. The investigation also uncovered that Powers was aware, as early as 1999, that its Fast Set product was being used for a sustained overhead load in the ceiling tunnel, yet the corporation did not take any steps to caution the Project managers against use of the Fast Set product for that application.
Based upon the findings of this investigation, authorities now allege that Powers knew that its epoxy product was being used in the tunnel, and when provided with the opportunity, failed to differentiate to project managers between its Fast Set and Standard Set products. Authorities further allege that Powers failed to reveal this fact in either its marketing material, or when it was specifically asked and had the necessary knowledge and the opportunity to prevent the fatal ceiling collapse but failed to do so.
On August 8, 2007, a Suffolk County Grand Jury returned indictments against Powers. They were arraigned today in Suffolk Superior Court where they pleaded not guilty to the charge. They are next scheduled to appear in Suffolk Superior Court on October 16, 2007, for a pretrial conference. A tentative trial date was set for September 9, 2008. Special Assistant Attorney General Paul Ware, Chairman of the Litigation Department at the Boston firm Goodwin Procter LLP, is overseeing the prosecution team for this case.
Source: Massachusetts Attorney General
Bookmark/Search this post with:
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
Related articles
- Response Of Massachusetts To Defendant Powers Fasteners Statement At Arraignment
- Powers Fasteners Indicted For Manslaughter In Connection With Big Dig Tunnel Ceiling Collapse
- Bill to Reverse EPA Denial of California Vehicles Waiver Passes Senate Environment Committee
- On-Line Yellow Page Listing Service To Pay $400,000 To Resolve Allegations It Scammed Customers
- Massachusetts AG Reaches $10 Million Settlement With Merck As Part Of $649 Million National Settlement
Latest stories
- Statement by Senator Barack Obama on EU Emergency Summit Meeting
- Barack Obama Statement on the Resignation of Japanese Prime Minister Fukuda
- Senator Barack Obama's Statement on the Third Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina
- Statement from Sarah and Todd Palin Regarding Unwed Teen Daughter's Pregnancy
- White House Press Gaggle by Dana Perino and FEMA Administrator Dave Paulison -- September 1, 2008
- Zimbabwe District Calls for Renewed Government Effort on Solar Energy
- Thousands of Anti-War Protesters March to Site of Republican Convention
- US: More than 11,000 Iraqi Detainees Released in 2008
- DoD Identifies Navy Casualty: Petty Officer 1st Class Joshua Harris, 36,of Lexington, North Carolina
- DoD Identifies Army Casualty: Spc. Steven J. Fitzmorris, 26, of Columbia, Missouri
Yes We Can
Yes We Can:
