Plan to Go On With Tunnel Job Outlined

Engineers in charge of Metro Rail subway construction Monday outlined plans to work around a fire-gutted section of tunnel in an effort to keep the much-delayed project from falling further behind schedule.

“If a fire had to occur anywhere in the (tunnel complex), that section causes us the least problems,” said Bob Campbell, project controls manager for Ralph M. Parsons Co., Dillingham Construction Co., and Deleuw, Cather & Co., the consortium hired to oversee Metro Rail construction.

Fire of unknown origin July 13 gutted one of two, parallel tunnels under construction near Union Station, causing one stretch of the 750-foot long tunnel to collapse and blocking traffic on U.S. 101 through downtown Los Angeles for more than three days.

Following a meeting of the Rail Construction Corp., the government agency which helps direct both subway and light rail construction in the county, Campbell repeated earlier claims that the fire should not cause further delays in overall construction of the 4.4-mile subway system. The $1.4-billion project, already months behind schedule, now is slated to open in September, 1993.

Campbell told Rail Construction Corp. board members that it is possible workers could begin laying track on schedule in the undamaged tunnel in early November. They would by-pass the damaged tunnel while repairs are being made.

Richard Kunz, deputy construction manager for the building consortium, said the heavily damaged northern section of the tunnel can be repaired by replacing all of the wooden supports and applying “shotcrete,” a heavy-duty, air-blown form of concrete, to the tunnel walls.

Surprisingly, he said, the southern end of the tunnel was less severely damaged than first feared and may be repaired by replacing wood timbers and adding concrete grout. Officials still must decide whether to excavate or tunnel through the middle section, which collapsed in the fire, Kunz said.