MBTA: Utility boxes removed from all stations after woman hit by falling metal
CAMBRIDGE - The MBTA says metal utility boxes have been removed from the ceilings of all subway stations, days after one fell and hit a woman.
The equipment fell Monday at the Harvard MBTA station in Cambridge. Surveillance video shows the box hitting a female rider, sending her to the hospital with minor injuries.
An MBTA investigation found metal support straps that secured the utility box to a column had corroded.
A total of fourteen boxes were installed at three MBTA stations more than a decade ago, but had been obsolete for years.
"The box that became dislodged was part of a 2011 pilot program led by the MIT Lincoln Laboratory, and funded by the Department Homeland Security, to house sensors capable of detecting and identifying biological agents," the MBTA said in a statement this week. "The boxes were installed at Harvard, Porter and Davis Stations. The boxes have served no purpose since the pilot program ended in 2013."
MBTA General Manager Phillip Eng ordered inspections at every station following Monday's accident. The MBTA confirmed Friday that all of the utility boxes have now been removed.
