Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, the Judiciary, the District of Columbia, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006
TRANSPORTATION, TREASURY, HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, THE JUDICIARY, THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, AND INDEPENDENT AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2006 -- (House of Representatives - June 29, 2005)
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.
Mr. Chairman, I would like to engage in a colloquy with the chairman of the subcommittee, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Knollenberg).
Mr. Chairman, the worst construction accident in Federal transportation history in the city of Toledo, Ohio, took place on February 16, 2004 on the $200 million I-280 Maumee River Crossing Bridge, affecting serious loss of life. Crushed to death on the job, as a launching gantry crane collapsed, were Mike Phillips, age 42; Arden Clark, age 47; Mike Moreau, age 30; and Robert Lipinski, Jr., age 44. As I mentioned before, all iron workers. There were injuries sustained by many other workers.
Since that time, the Lucas County prosecutor has been investigating the accidents to determine if there may be criminal liability in these deaths. The prosecutor's office has been working with the Inspector General of the Department of Transportation, but has needs that go beyond the assistance that the Inspector General can provide. The prosecutor needs technical assistance in determining answers to engineering and other special issues. One might expect that such expertise resides within the Department of Transportation, perhaps specifically at the Federal Highway Administration.
Mr. Chairman, would the gentleman from Michigan (Chairman Knollenberg) and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Ranking Minority Member Olver) be willing to work with me to determine what resources may be available throughout DOT, including the Federal Highway Administration, to provide technical expertise in the ongoing investigation and to ensure that such assistance is provided to the Lucas County prosecutor?
Additionally, if such assistance is not available directly from the Department, would the chairman work with us to determine if the Department can provide assistance to the Lucas County prosecutor in the hiring of appropriate outside experts?
Mr. KNOLLENBERG. Mr. Chairman, will the gentlewoman yield?
Ms. KAPTUR. I yield to the gentleman from Michigan.
Mr. KNOLLENBERG. Mr. Chairman, I can assure the gentlewoman that I will do everything I can to work with her to make sure that we do address this issue. So I thank the gentlewoman for bringing it up.
Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Michigan. It is greatly appreciated.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
http://thomas.loc.gov
Source