Massachusetts Widow Sues Big Dig Contractors Over Husband’s Death

The widow of a Salem, Mass. man who died when he was flung into the handrails inside a Big Dig tunnel after his pickup truck crashed has filed a $2 million wrongful death suit against eight companies involved in construction of the tunnel.

Donna Hicks, the wife of Brian Hicks, says in the suit filed this week in Suffolk Superior Court that contractors knew the design of the railings was dangerous but failed to take any action to address the problem.

Hicks, who died in March, was the eighth motorist, including a state trooper, to die since 2005 after striking the sharp-edged rails.

Donna Hicks’ lawyer says even though her husband was speeding and not wearing a seat belt, he may have survived the crash had the rails been designed differently.