Mass. crisis of confidence

With a Big Dig flaw now responsible for a death, state officials rushed yesterday to contain an unprecedented crisis of public confidence in the project, launching a sprawling criminal investigation and moving to oust the Turnpike Authority chairman.

As fear and outrage mounted, Governor Mitt Romney said he does not believe anyone can feel safe driving through the tunnels. ``People should not have to drive through the turnpike tunnels with their fingers crossed," Romney said.

But that exactly is how many Greater Boston residents felt yesterday: A roadway nearly everyone uses and that they had been repeatedly assured was safe could now kill them. And if the accident had occurred during the day, many more could have been harmed or killed.

``It's almost like a plane crash, where it happens, but now you hope it doesn't happen to you," said George Greene, 36, of Dorchester.

Federal and state prosecutors began a massive investigation into the role of all the companies and government agencies involved in designing, constructing, and overseeing the Interstate 90 connector tunnel ceiling, where a 2 1/2-ton concrete panel held in place by steel hangers plummeted onto a car late Monday, crushing 38-year-old Milena Del Valle to death.

Turnpike officials yesterday began inspecting 17 other sections of the connector tunnel that use identical steel hangers. The heavily traveled tunnel, a key link between I-90 and the Ted Williams Tunnel, will be closed until inspections and fixes are complete, at least until this afternoon.

Turnpike officials also began inspecting the entire Ted Williams Tunnel, which uses similar hangers to secure panels at 20 points along its ceiling. However, Turnpike Authority officials said that the tunnel was safe, in part because the panels are lighter, and would remain open to traffic.

Turnpike Authority chairman Matthew J. Amorello said he did not plan to heed calls to resign, saying he is the best person for the job and is focusing on making repairs.

``We're going to take every step necessary to make sure that nothing like this ever happens again in these tunnels," said Amorello, who was chairman when the tunnel connector was completed.

After numerous delays, cost overruns, leaks, questions about substandard concrete, and other setbacks, the first death other than of a construction worker caused by the Big Dig provided tragic and irrefutable proof of deep flaws in the $14.6 billion project, the largest public works project in recent US history.

State and federal law enforcement agents seized debris from the accident scene yesterday as part of their investigation into the cause of the tragedy. Subpoenas were sent to Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff, lead contractor on the project, and to Modern Continental Corp., which installed the fallen ceiling panels, authorities said.

Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly promised a broad and aggressive probe into potential criminal charges of negligent manslaughter.

He said that defendants could include ``anyone that signed off on this."

``That includes federal authorities, it includes state agencies, it includes the Turnpike Authority , and it includes the project manager," Reilly said.

``No one is going to be spared here, in terms of looking and getting to the bottom of this."

Reilly's office joined the Federal Bureau of Investigation, US Attorney Michael J. Sullivan's office, and Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley's office in investigating the fatal collapse.

``We're treating this as a crime scene , and we're looking at manslaughter," said Reilly. ``For something like this to happen, we're looking at reckless, wanton conduct that caused the unfortunate death of this young woman. . . . Responsibility needs to be allocated."

In addition to the criminal probe, state officials called in Chicago-based STS Consultants Ltd. to conduct a deeper technical review of the I-90 connector tunnel's problems. But officials want to reopen the tunnel as soon as they believe it is safe.

At the accident site yesterday, work crews installed several metal scaffolds to support the remaining ceiling panels. About 30 panels secured with identical metal hangers were removed and hauled away on flatbed trucks as a precaution .

The panels were suspended from the uppermost tunnel ceiling by a series of metal hangers that are coated with high-strength epoxy and inserted into holes drilled into the ceiling. The so-called drop ceiling design created a passageway above the road for air and exhaust to circulate.

In Big Dig tunnels outside the connector and the Ted Williams Tunnel, the ceiling design is more secure. The hangers securing the panels are attached to metal fixtures embedded in the ceiling concrete. It was unclear yesterday why the I-90 connector did not use that method.

It was also unclear yesterday how the panel s that killed Del Valle came loose.

The I-90 connector tunnel was inspected before it opened in January 2003 and was in the process of being inspected again this year, authorities said. None of the inspections had turned up safety problems, Amorello said.

He said the tunnel might be reopened today without reassembling the ventilation passage, saying it would be safe.

Romney and Reilly both called on Amorello to step down after four years leading the Turnpike Authority. Romney has long tried to push Amorello out of the $223,000-a-year job as chairman and chief executive officer. With allies in the state Senate, where he once served, Amorello has held on to the post.

But Del Valle's death marked the most serious problem to emerge from the trouble-plagued Big Dig.

Yesterday, a somber Amorello visited Del Valle's husband, Angel Del Valle, 46, who crawled out of the crushed car on Monday night, suffering only minor injuries while his wife lay dying in the seat beside him.

``We feel awful about what happened . . . ," Amorello said in an earlier press conference. ``It's a horrible, horrible tragedy, and we will take every step to secure the public safety in these tunnels."

But Romney blasted Amorello in a press conference that followed a tense confrontation between the two men as they inspected the accident site about noon.

The governor, listing the litany of the Big Dig's problems, said Amorello is ``just over his head when it comes to the management of the Turnpike Authority."

``I don't think anyone can feel comfortable today in driving through the tunnels, knowing that the chairman responsible for those tunnels has stood up and said that they are safe, and then to find that a 3-ton section has fallen down and killed someone," Romney said. ``We just don't have confidence in the chairman of the Turnpike Authority, and the list is now long enough, and I think severe enough, that a court will ultimately support the removal of Chairman Amorello."

Romney's lawyer said he will seek to demote Amorello, which could be an easier legal strategy than seeking to remove him from the Turnpike Authority board.

Chief legal counsel Mark D. Nielsen said he will rely on a 2002 Supreme Judicial Court decision issued after then Acting Governor Jane Swift sought to remove board members Christy Mihos and Jordan Levy. In its decision, the SJC said board members can be removed for cause, defined as ``malfeasance, misfeasance, or willful neglect of duty."

Nielsen said yesterday that he believes he can argue successfully that Amorello's conduct meets that standard, but also said that the legal standard for a demotion might be lower.

Reilly said he also urged Amorello in a phone conversation to resign.

``I made it very clear to the chairman that I believe he has become a distraction at this point," said Reilly, who has himself faced criticism for lax Big Dig oversight .

Many commuters who regularly use the tunnel and are familiar with its woes were outraged that someone could die using a public roadway that had already received considerable scrutiny by state and federal officials.

``It's leaking water, there are tiles and concrete coming down, and now there's a fatality, which is a shame," said Joe DiMarco , 59, of Bellingham. ``The bottom line is the job wasn't done right, apparently, from a construction standpoint."

But some commuters said they had no choice but to use the Big Dig tunnels and roadways. Mark Surette , 46, of Winthrop, said his construction job takes him through the tunnels as many as three times a day, and if his route calls for using the tunnels, he will continue to use them.

``What else are you going to do? Drive around the city?" said Surette. ``You'll think twice about it, but you don't want to have to drive all around the city for a 10-minute drive."

Many commuters wanted punishments to be levied. ``It's horrible. I think the commissioner has to pay the price," said Paul Mooney of Dorchester, 58. ``I'm not going through [the tunnels]. Either water's coming down or cement is coming down. It's a curse."

``Only $14.6 billion, you think it might work."

Andrea Estes and Carey Goldberg of the Globe staff and Globe correspondents Ari Bloomekatz and Lemont A. Calloway contributed to this report. Raja Mishra can be reached at rmishra@globe.com, and Sean P. Murphy at smurphy@globe.com.