State safety regulators fine Seattle tunnel contractor for violations

SEATTLE (AP) — State safety regulators fined Seattle Tunnel Partners $2,050 for violations relating to a February accident in which four iron workers were injured when a wall in the tunnel's north portal collapsed, the state Department of Labor & Industries said Monday.

The Alaskan Way Viaduct is being replaced with a two-mile long tunnel under Seattle, but drilling has stopped while Bertha, the broken tunnel-boring machine, is repaired.

The Department of Labor & Industries cited the tunnel contractor and fined it $1,750 for not ensuring that protruding pieces of rebar were protected to prevent workers from possibly getting impaled during a fall.

The department also issued three citations and $300 fines for failing to properly report the numbers of missed days for 17 workers who were injured in the past three years.

The subcontractor on the project, Central Steel, was fined $2,050 in April for its part in that accident. That citation is under appeal.