Boston soaked us all
Waterproofing warning: Contractors failed to correct leak problems
By Casey Ross
Friday, November 19, 2004
Despite explicit warnings by top Big Dig officials in 1997, contractors failed to correct ineffective waterproofing practices that threatened to undermine construction in some of the most sensitive areas of the project, according to Turnpike officials and construction documents.
The errors have caused water to pool and leak through the roof of Interstate 93 tunnels where contractors are working furiously every night to repair the damage.
State investigators said at least $10 million - and likely much more - has been spent on that effort so far, with much work left to be completed. Turnpike officials said the work is being charged directly to Modern Continental, the contractor that made the mistakes.
Meanwhile, work to repair leaks and water damage in a small portion of the tunnels has cost at least $35 million, and state investigators expect to uncover millions more in cost overruns as they continue their work.
According to Turnpike consultant George Tamaro, since September's surprise gusher, four more panels in the I-93 tunnel have been found with similar defects that could also spring leaks.
The waterproofing errors came after an urgent warning issued by a 1997 Big Dig task force that uncovered widespread problems in the tunnels. ``Changes must occur, otherwise, the project will continue to have problems with the waterproofing installation quality and future maintainence,'' the task force report states.
``The (Big Dig) contractors have a one-time opportunity to ensure effective waterproofing installation, and it is critical that (Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff's) oversight be both accurate and timely.''
But during the next few years, project officials said, Modern ContinenContinenContinental performed faulty work on the roof of the I-93 tunnels - one of the most sensitive areas of construction - and Bechtel did not act to correct the errors or try to recover costs.
The revelations come as state and federal investigative teams launch probes into hundreds of leaks plaguing the $14.6 billion project and try to ensure that taxpayers are not left with another staggering bill.
The Turnpike Authority's board discussed the faulty work during a combative meeting yesterday in which scandal-weary board members demanded answers.
'`I want to be damn sure someone is going to pay for this and it's not going to be me!'' Turnpike Vice Chairman Jordan Levy said during one heated exchange with a Bechtel engineer.
While the extent of waterproofing mistakes were not discussed openly at the meeting, Turnpike officials said later that faulty work was performed well after problems were first discovered in 1994 and became the subject of urgent warnings in 1997.
The 1997 task force that studied the deficiencies reported that ineffective materials were being used and contractors and supervisors were poorly trained and not performing inspections.
The report, which said some waterproofing was bubbling up like ``Swiss cheese,'' specifically warned that contractors and inspectors must accept responsibility for mistakes immediately and take corrective action.
( The Associated Press contributed to this report. )
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