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That's not supposed to happen anymore: Driver says part of O'Neill Tunnel roof almost hits car
By adamg on Tue, 07/08/2014 - 11:31pm
UPDATE: State officials say they couldn't find any evidence of anything falling from the ceiling.
Am_Sci reports:
I was driving southbound through the O'Neill tunnel earlier this afternoon, when a long, rectangular, and apparently heavy object fell from the ceiling into the lane in front of me. It was accompanied by a plume of dust that quickly cleared.
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Comments
They were doing some type of
They were doing some type of drilling, construction trucks and all , on the greenway above o'neil tunnel near fanuel hall side tuesday afternoon.
If only we had a position in
If only we had a position in state government like an "Attorney General" to investigate claims of shoddy work, corrupt suppliers substituting substandard building materials, and criminally lax maintenance or inspections.
We should petition the governor and legislature immediately to determine why this essential position doesn't exist!
Excellent idea!
Perhaps this "Attorney General" could also constrain the various police agencies from behaving like street gangs and running roughshod over citizens' civil liberties. A radical concept, I know, but it does have certain attractive aspects.
[–]nOrthSCWatertown 59 points
Truth!
could have happened as described, but...
it supposedly happened in the middle of the day and no one else reported seeing it? And the Redditor never bothered (by his own admission) reporting it to MassDOT - even after several other posters encouraged him and provided the link to do so? And he doesn't remember exactly where it happened?
It certainly could have happened, but the whole thing seems a bit tabloidish.
If the incident did indeed happen as described
then it was likely a light fixture, and not part of the tunnel ceiling. IIRC, the ceiling anchorage design in the O'Neill Tunnel is different than the "epoxy bolt" anchors used in the Fort Point Channel tunnel that collapsed in 2006. Therefore, a repeat of the De Valle scenario would be extremely unlikely there.
Even so, I agree that it seems a bit suspicious that the only mention of this so far was on a Reddit site.
As for not reporting this incident to MassDOT, sadly that's a common consequence of the modern age we live in. Many people coming upon a major crash or road debris that could impede traffic, or similar situations that could have serious consequences if not quickly addressed, will NOT take the time to report it, figuring that somebody else will (or already has).
No evidence of something falling
Just posted a reply from MassDOT.