Powers Fasteners Indictment Dropped In $16m Settlement
Powers Fasteners Indictment Dropped In $16m Settlement
Jason Sandefur
Powers Fasteners agreed to pay $16 million in exchange for one count of manslaughter being dropped against the company. Powers Fasteners was charged in the July 2006 death of a woman in Boston’s Big Dig tunnel.
In addition to the financial settlement, Powers reportedly agreed to recall its “fast-set” epoxy used in the tunnel that collapsed, as well as notify customers that the epoxy failed certain tests and is not recommended for sustained loads.
New York-based Powers Fasteners was charged in 2007 with manslaughter in the death of Milena Del Valle, who was crushed when the tunnel collapsed. Powers Fasteners, which manufactured the epoxy blamed for the tunnel collapse, reached a $6 million settlement with the woman’s family.
Company president Jeffrey Powers applauded the deal. “Today our company accepts its share of responsibility as one of many businesses involved in the construction of the tunnel,” stated Powers.
He noted that Powers Fasteners is a “very small company” with just 240 employees. “The indictment alone has put enormous stress on our business and our people in an economic environment posing its own special challenges. We are very happy to bring to a close this difficult chapter for all concerned.”
Powers officials insisted they told Big Dig officials that their ‘fast-set’ epoxy was to be used only to secure wall panels, not heavy overhead concrete ceiling panels.
Big Dig contractor Modern Continental Corp. faces 49 federal criminal charges for allegedly hiding shoddy workmanship.
A National Transportation Safety Board report that spread broad blame for the ceiling collapse, concluding that designers and construction crews had not considered that the epoxy holding 5/8″ diameter threaded steel anchor rods embedded about five inches in the tunnel’s concrete roof could creep under load. The NTSB specifically faulted the ceiling designer for failing to stipulate which kind of epoxy to use during installation. Web: powers.com �2008 FastenerNews.com
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