Summary

In response to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the adequacy of the Federal Government's investigation of the collapse of a highway ramp under construction in East Chicago, Indiana, to determine whether the investigation is employing all available resources. The project is 90-percent funded by the Department of Transportation. On April 15, 1982, three sections of the ramp collapsed, killing 13 workers and injuring 17 others.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the National Bureau of Standards (NBS), and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) are involved in the investigation. NBS and FHWA are seeking to determine the technical cause of the accident at the request of OSHA. Indiana OSHA will use the results of the investigation as a basis for determining the need to issue appropriate citations and penalties for violations of occupational safety standards. The major objectives of the accident investigation are to determine the accident's cause and prevent further occurrences. Federal officials acted promptly in the aftermath of the collapse, and the agencies are coordinating their efforts to determine the technical cause. NBS appears to be well qualified to determine the most probable technical cause. However, NBS and the other agencies are not examining and have no plans to examine aspects of the project such as safety standards and monitoring requirements that may have contributed to the collapse. The NBS investigation may help pinpoint weaknesses, but its purpose is not to evaluate systemic aspects. No single Federal agency or group has the responsibility for directing and coordinating the total Federal investigative efforts for this accident or similar ones. If a Federal agency is given the responsibility for investigating structural failures, that agency also needs to have specific responsibility for directing and coordinating the total Federal investigative effort for major accidents on Federal construction projects.