BOSTON -- A section of Interstate 90 eastbound that links the highway to the Ted Williams tunnel remained closed to motorists Wednesday as state and federal authorities launched a criminal investigation into an accident there that left a Boston woman dead.

The road remains closed indefinitely.

Milena Delvalle, 38, was crushed to death Monday night when three-ton concrete slabs fell from the tunnel ceiling onto her car. Her husband, Angel, 46, escaped with minor injuries. The couple was going to the airport to pick up relatives who were returning from a vacation when tiebacks holding the ceiling panels up gave way.

"It was like a bomb," he told the Boston Herald. "Everything was falling. It was too fast. I couldn't stop. I couldn't do anything."

The accident, which triggered a shutdown of the Big Dig highway and major traffic jams Tuesday, also prompted Gov. Mitt Romney to start legal proceedings to remove Massachusetts Turnpike Authority Chairman Matt Amorello from his position.

Meantime, Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly said charges in the criminal investigation could range from negligent homicide to perjury. He said many of the people involved in the design, manufacture and oversight of the Big Dig connector tunnel construction would be subpoenaed, including the Turnpike Authority and project manager Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff.

"This was a massive failure. This isn't just one panel. You can visually see it. There are other panels as well and other joints that have clearly been compromised," Reilly said.

Back in 2001, officials had concerns about the tieback anchors that supported the ceiling panels and, in 2004, overseers approved nearly $500,000 for improvements to the ceiling supports. That work was assigned in the area where the panels collapsed Monday. Similar tiebacks were used in at least 20 other areas, state officials said, and those were being checked by engineers following the accident.

Officials said the same kind of ceiling was hung in the Ted Williams tunnel but they said those panels were considerably lighter. They said those panels would be reinspected but it won't be closed during the inspection process.

The $14.6 billion Big Dig highway construction project, one of the most expensive in U.S. history, has sparked controversy since its start. Romney said something needs to be done to restore public confidence in the safety of the project following ceiling leaks, botched cost recovery efforts and now the death of a motorist.

"People should not have to drive through the Turnpike tunnels with their fingers crossed," said Romney.