BALTIMORE — Maryland Gov. Wes Moore warned Thursday of a “very long road ahead” to recover from the loss of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge as the Biden administration approved $60 million in immediate federal aid after the deadly collapse.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was moving the largest crane on the Eastern Seaboard to help remove the wreckage of the bridge, Moore said, so work to clear the channel and reopen the key shipping route can begin. The machine, which can lift up to 1,000 tons, was expected to arrived Thursday evening, and U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen said a second crane with a 400-ton capacity could arrive Saturday.
The state is “deeply grateful” for the federal funds and support, Moore said at an evening news conference.
Moore promised Thursday that "the best minds in the world" were working on plans to clear the debris, move the cargo ship that rammed into the bridge from the channel, recover the bodies of the four remaining workers presumed dead and investigate what went wrong.
"Government is working hand in hand with industry to investigate the area, including the wreck, and remove the ship," said Moore, a Democrat, who said quick aid is needed to "lay the foundation for a rapid recovery."
"This work is not going to take hours. This work is not going to take days. This work is not going to take weeks," Moore said. "We have a very long road ahead of us."
Van Hollen said 32 members of the Army Corps of Engineers are surveying the scene of the collapse and 38 Navy contractors are working on the salvage operation.
The devastation left behind after the powerless cargo ship struck a support pillar early Tuesday is extensive.
Divers recovered the bodies of two men in a pickup truck near the bridge's middle span Wednesday, but officials said they have to start clearing the wreckage before anyone could reach the bodies of four other missing workers.
State police said Wednesday that, based on sonar scans, the vehicles appear to be encased in a “superstructure” of concrete and other debris.
National Transportation Safety Board officials boarded the ship, the Dali, to recover information from its electronics and paperwork and to interview the captain and other crew members.
Investigators shared a preliminary timeline of events before the crash, which federal and state officials said appeared to be an accident.
Of the 21 crew members on the ship, 20 are from India, Randhir Jaiswal, the nation's foreign ministry spokesperson, told reporters. One was slightly injured and needed stitches, but "all are in good shape and good health," Jaiswal said.
The victims, who were part of a construction crew fixing potholes on the bridge, were from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, officials said. At least eight people initially went into the water when the ship struck the bridge column, and two of them were rescued Tuesday, officials said.
The crash caused the bridge to break and fall into the water within seconds. Authorities had just enough time to stop vehicle traffic, but didn't get a chance to alert the construction crew.
During the Baltimore Orioles’ opening day game Thursday, Sgt. Paul Pastorek, Cpl. Jeremy Herbert and Officer Garry Kirts of the Maryland Transportation Authority were honored for their actions in halting bridge traffic and preventing further loss of life.
The Dali, which is managed by Synergy Marine Group, was headed from Baltimore to Sri Lanka and is owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd. Danish shipping giant Maersk said it chartered the vessel.
Synergy extended sympathies to the victims' families early Thursday.
Scott Cowan, president of the International Longshoremen's Association Local 333, said the union is scrambling to help its roughly 2,400 members whose jobs are at risk of drying up until shipping can resume in the Port of Baltimore.
"If there's no ships, there's no work," he said. "We're doing everything we can."
The huge vessel was carrying nearly 4,700 metal shipping containers, 56 of them with hazardous materials inside. Fourteen of those were destroyed, officials said. However, industrial hygienists identified the contents as perfumes and soaps, according to the Key Bridge Joint Information Center.
"There was no immediate threat to the environment," the center said.
About 21 gallons of oil from a bow thruster on the ship is believed to have caused a sheen in the waterway, Coast Guard Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath said Thursday. Booms were placed to prevent any spreading, and state environmental officials were sampling the water.
At the moment there are also cargo containers hanging dangerously off the side of the ship, Gilreath said, adding, “We’re trying to keep our first responders … as safe as possible.”
The sudden loss of a highway that carries 30,000 vehicles a day and the port disruption will affect not only thousands of dockworkers and commuters but also U.S. consumers, who are likely to feel the impact of shipping delays.
The governors of New York and New Jersey offered to take on cargo shipments that were disrupted, to try to minimize supply chain problems.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg met Thursday with supply chain officials. He previously said the Biden administration is focused on reopening the port and rebuilding the bridge, but did not put a timeline on those efforts.
The operators of the Dali cargo ship issued a mayday call that the vessel had lost power moments before the crash, but the ship still headed toward the span at “a very, very rapid speed," Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said.
The 985-foot-long vessel struck one of the 1.6-mile bridge’s supports, causing the span to break and fall into the water within seconds.
Six construction workers who were filling potholes on the bridge were still missing Tuesday afternoon and presumed dead. Jeffrey Pritzker, executive vice president of Brawner Builders, said they were working in the middle of the span when it came apart.
An inspection of the Dali last June at a port in Chile identified a problem with the ship’s “propulsion and auxiliary machinery,” according to Equasis, a shipping information system. The deficiency involved gauges and thermometers, but the website’s online records didn’t elaborate.
The most recent inspection listed for the Dali was conducted by the U.S. Coast Guard in New York in September. The “standard examination” didn’t identify any deficiencies, according to the Equasis data.
The ship was moving at 8 knots, which is roughly 9 mph.
Given the vessel’s massive weight, it struck the bridge support with significant force, said Roberto Leon, a Virginia Tech engineering professor.
“The only way the post can resist it is by bending,” Leon said. “But it cannot absorb anywhere near the energy that this humongous ship is bringing. So it’s going to break.”
Last June, federal inspectors rated the 47-year-old bridge in fair condition. But the structure did not appear to have pier protection to withstand the crash, experts said.
“If a bridge pier without adequate protection is hit by a ship of this size, there is very little that the bridge could do,” Leon said.
Pictured: A container rests against wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge on Tuesday, March 26, 2024, as seen from Sparrows Point, Md. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Two people were rescued, but officials said six people were still unaccounted for and presumed dead. All were believed to be part of a construction crew that was repairing potholes on the bridge.
The six missing people were part of a construction crew filling potholes on the bridge, said Paul Wiedefeld, the state's transportation secretary.
Guatemala’s consulate in Maryland said in a statement that two were Guatemalan citizens working on the bridge. It did not provide their names but said consular officials were in contact with local authorities and assisting the families.
A senior executive at the company that employed the workers also said, in the afternoon, that the workers were presumed dead given the water’s depth and how much time had passed.
Jeffrey Pritzker, executive vice president of Brawner Builders, said the crew was working in the middle of the bridge when it came down.
“This was so completely unforeseen,” Pritzker said. “We don’t know what else to say. We take such great pride in safety, and we have cones and signs and lights and barriers and flaggers."
Multiple vehicles also fell into the water, although authorities don't think anyone was inside them.
The ship is owned by Singapore-based Grace Ocean Private Ltd., which said all crew members, including the two pilots, were accounted for and there were no reports of injuries.
The ship's warning enabled authorities to limit vehicle traffic on the span. Plus, the accident occurred at 1:30 a.m., long before the busy morning rush. The bridge carried an estimated 30,800 vehicles a day on average in 2019.
Pictured: Boats move near a container ship as it rests against wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge on Tuesday, March 26, 2024, as seen from Dundalk, Md. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
The collapse will almost surely create a logistical nightmare for months, if not years, in the region, shutting down ship traffic at the Port of Baltimore, a major shipping hub. The accident will also snarl cargo and commuter traffic.
The port is a major East Coast hub for shipping. The bridge spans the Patapsco River, which massive cargo ships use to reach the Chesapeake Bay and then the Atlantic Ocean.
The Dali was headed from Baltimore to Colombo, Sri Lanka, and flying under a Singapore flag, according to data from Marine Traffic.
President Joe Biden said Tuesday that he plans to travel to Baltimore “as quickly as I can” and that he expects the federal government to pick up the entire cost of rebuilding the bridge.
The collapse, however, is not likely to have a big effect on worldwide trade because Baltimore is not a major port for container vessels, but the port’s facilities are more important when it comes to goods such as farm equipment and autos, said Judah Levine, head of research for global freight booking platform Freightos.
Leon, the Virginia Tech professor, said lessons can be learned and improvements can be made following this disaster. For example, bridge cameras and sensors can be used to track when a cargo ship heads off course and communicate with traffic lights and gates at bridge entrances.
“I think that our mission now is to learn from this failure and learn at all levels,” Leon said.
Pictured: Parts of the Francis Scott Key Bridge remain after a container ship collided with one of the bridge’s support Tuesday, March 26, 2024 in Baltimore. (WJLA via AP)
From 1960 to 2015, there were 35 major bridge collapses worldwide due to ship or barge collisions, with a total of 342 people killed, according to a 2018 report from the World Association for Waterborne Transport Infrastructure.
Eighteen of those collapses happened in the United States.
Among them were a 2002 incident in which a barge struck the Interstate 40 bridge over the Arkansas River at Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, sending vehicles plunging into the water. Fourteen people died and 11 were injured.
And in 2001, a tugboat and barge struck the Queen Isabella Causeway in Port Isabel, Texas, causing a section of the bridge to tumble 80 feet into the bay below. Eight people were killed.
Pictured: A cargo ship is stuck under the part of the structure of the Francis Scott Key Bridge after the ship hit the bridge Tuesday, March 26, 2024, in Baltimore, Md. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
March 20, 2009: A vessel pushing eight barges rammed into the Popp's Ferry Bridge in Biloxi, Mississippi, resulting in a 150-foot section of the bridge collapsing into the bay.
INTERSTATE 40 BRIDGE: 14 DEAD
May 26, 2002: A barge hit the Interstate 40 bridge over the Arkansas River at Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, collapsing a 500-foot section of road and plunging vehicles into the water. Fourteen people died and 11 were injured.
QUEEN ISABELLA CAUSEWAY: 8 DEAD
Sept. 15, 2001: A tugboat and barge struck the Queen Isabella Causeway in Port Isabel, Texas, causing a midsection of the bridge to tumble 80 feet into the bay below. Eight people died after motorists drove into the hole.
EADS BRIDGE: 50 INJURED
April 14, 1998: The Anne Holly tow traveling through the St. Louis Harbor rammed into the center span of the Eads Bridge. Eight barges broke away. Three of them hit a permanently moored gambling vessel below the bridge. Fifty people suffered minor injuries.
BIG BAYOU CANOT: 47 DEAD
Sept. 22, 1993: Barges being pushed by a towboat in dense fog hit and displaced the Big Bayou Canot railroad bridge near Mobile, Alabama. Minutes later, an Amtrak train with 220 people aboard reached the displaced bridge and derailed, killing 47 people and injuring 103 people.
SEEBER BRIDGE: 1 DEAD
May 28, 1993: The towboat Chris, pushing the empty hopper barge DM3021, hit a support tier of the Judge William Seeber Bridge in New Orleans. Two spans and the two-column bent collapsed onto the barge. Two cars carrying three people fell with the four-lane bridge deck into a canal. One person died and two people were seriously injured.
SUNSHINE SKYWAY BRIDGE: 35 DEAD
May 9, 1980: The 609-foot freighter Summit Venture was navigating through the narrow, winding shipping channel of Florida’s Tampa Bay when a sudden, blinding squall knocked out the ship’s radar. The ship sheared off a support of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, dropping a 1,400-foot section of concrete roadway during the morning rush hour. Seven vehicles, including a bus with 26 aboard, fell 150 feet into the water. Thirty-five people died.
Pictured: This satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows the overview of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Md., on May 6, 2023. A container ship lost power and rammed into the bridge Tuesday, March 26, 2024, causing the span to buckle into the river below. (Maxaar Technologies via AP)
The bridge that collapsed into a Maryland river after a ship strike Tuesday was iconic — erected almost five decades ago, named after the author of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” and part of the very fabric of Baltimore.
Built near the spot where Francis Scott Key witnessed the bombardment of a fort that inspired what would become America’s national anthem, the namesake bridge collapsed into the Patapsco River after being struck by a cargo ship that reported losing power just before the crash. Rescue crews were looking for the bodies of six people who remained unaccounted for Tuesday afternoon and were presumed dead.
“The words ‘the Key Bridge is gone,’ it's still sinking in,” said Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. “For 47 years, that's all we've known. It's not just unprecedented; it's heartbreaking.”
Designed as an outer crossing of the Baltimore Harbor, the 1.6-mile bridge opened on March 23, 1977, as the final link in Interstate 695, known locally as the Baltimore Beltway.
The bridge was built within 100 yards of where Key witnessed the British bombardment of Fort McHenry on Sept. 12, 1814, according to the Maryland Transportation Authority.
Key stood on the deck of an American ship in the Patapsco and watched Britain's 25-hour assault on the fort. The raising of the American flag afterward inspired him to write the poem “The Defense of Fort M’Henry," according to the National Parks Service. Set to music, it became the national anthem in 1931.
Anita Kassof, executive director of the Baltimore Museum of Industry, said the choice of Key as the bridge's namesake honors the city's toughness and perseverance in the face of tragedy.
“'The Star-Spangled Banner' is an anthem to American resiliency, and Baltimore is a very resilient city,” she said. “We've been through a lot and we've gotten through a lot, and we'll get through this, too.”
Pictured: A container ship passes under the Francis Scott Key bridge Feb. 26, 2005, as it steams up the Chesapeake Bay toward the Port of Baltimore. (AP Photo/Chris Gardner)
The operators of the Dali cargo ship issued a mayday call that the vessel had lost power moments before the crash, but the ship still headed toward the span at “a very, very rapid speed," Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said.
The 985-foot-long vessel struck one of the 1.6-mile bridge’s supports, causing the span to break and fall into the water within seconds.
Six construction workers who were filling potholes on the bridge were still missing Tuesday afternoon and presumed dead. Jeffrey Pritzker, executive vice president of Brawner Builders, said they were working in the middle of the span when it came apart.
An inspection of the Dali last June at a port in Chile identified a problem with the ship’s “propulsion and auxiliary machinery,” according to Equasis, a shipping information system. The deficiency involved gauges and thermometers, but the website’s online records didn’t elaborate.
The most recent inspection listed for the Dali was conducted by the U.S. Coast Guard in New York in September. The “standard examination” didn’t identify any deficiencies, according to the Equasis data.
The ship was moving at 8 knots, which is roughly 9 mph.
Given the vessel’s massive weight, it struck the bridge support with significant force, said Roberto Leon, a Virginia Tech engineering professor.
“The only way the post can resist it is by bending,” Leon said. “But it cannot absorb anywhere near the energy that this humongous ship is bringing. So it’s going to break.”
Last June, federal inspectors rated the 47-year-old bridge in fair condition. But the structure did not appear to have pier protection to withstand the crash, experts said.
“If a bridge pier without adequate protection is hit by a ship of this size, there is very little that the bridge could do,” Leon said.
Pictured: A container rests against wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge on Tuesday, March 26, 2024, as seen from Sparrows Point, Md. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Two people were rescued, but officials said six people were still unaccounted for and presumed dead. All were believed to be part of a construction crew that was repairing potholes on the bridge.
The six missing people were part of a construction crew filling potholes on the bridge, said Paul Wiedefeld, the state's transportation secretary.
Guatemala’s consulate in Maryland said in a statement that two were Guatemalan citizens working on the bridge. It did not provide their names but said consular officials were in contact with local authorities and assisting the families.
A senior executive at the company that employed the workers also said, in the afternoon, that the workers were presumed dead given the water’s depth and how much time had passed.
Jeffrey Pritzker, executive vice president of Brawner Builders, said the crew was working in the middle of the bridge when it came down.
“This was so completely unforeseen,” Pritzker said. “We don’t know what else to say. We take such great pride in safety, and we have cones and signs and lights and barriers and flaggers."
Multiple vehicles also fell into the water, although authorities don't think anyone was inside them.
The ship is owned by Singapore-based Grace Ocean Private Ltd., which said all crew members, including the two pilots, were accounted for and there were no reports of injuries.
The ship's warning enabled authorities to limit vehicle traffic on the span. Plus, the accident occurred at 1:30 a.m., long before the busy morning rush. The bridge carried an estimated 30,800 vehicles a day on average in 2019.
Pictured: Boats move near a container ship as it rests against wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge on Tuesday, March 26, 2024, as seen from Dundalk, Md. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
The collapse will almost surely create a logistical nightmare for months, if not years, in the region, shutting down ship traffic at the Port of Baltimore, a major shipping hub. The accident will also snarl cargo and commuter traffic.
The port is a major East Coast hub for shipping. The bridge spans the Patapsco River, which massive cargo ships use to reach the Chesapeake Bay and then the Atlantic Ocean.
The Dali was headed from Baltimore to Colombo, Sri Lanka, and flying under a Singapore flag, according to data from Marine Traffic.
President Joe Biden said Tuesday that he plans to travel to Baltimore “as quickly as I can” and that he expects the federal government to pick up the entire cost of rebuilding the bridge.
The collapse, however, is not likely to have a big effect on worldwide trade because Baltimore is not a major port for container vessels, but the port’s facilities are more important when it comes to goods such as farm equipment and autos, said Judah Levine, head of research for global freight booking platform Freightos.
Leon, the Virginia Tech professor, said lessons can be learned and improvements can be made following this disaster. For example, bridge cameras and sensors can be used to track when a cargo ship heads off course and communicate with traffic lights and gates at bridge entrances.
“I think that our mission now is to learn from this failure and learn at all levels,” Leon said.
Pictured: Parts of the Francis Scott Key Bridge remain after a container ship collided with one of the bridge’s support Tuesday, March 26, 2024 in Baltimore. (WJLA via AP)
TEL
From 1960 to 2015, there were 35 major bridge collapses worldwide due to ship or barge collisions, with a total of 342 people killed, according to a 2018 report from the World Association for Waterborne Transport Infrastructure.
Eighteen of those collapses happened in the United States.
Among them were a 2002 incident in which a barge struck the Interstate 40 bridge over the Arkansas River at Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, sending vehicles plunging into the water. Fourteen people died and 11 were injured.
And in 2001, a tugboat and barge struck the Queen Isabella Causeway in Port Isabel, Texas, causing a section of the bridge to tumble 80 feet into the bay below. Eight people were killed.
Pictured: A cargo ship is stuck under the part of the structure of the Francis Scott Key Bridge after the ship hit the bridge Tuesday, March 26, 2024, in Baltimore, Md. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
POPP'S FERRY BRIDGE
March 20, 2009: A vessel pushing eight barges rammed into the Popp's Ferry Bridge in Biloxi, Mississippi, resulting in a 150-foot section of the bridge collapsing into the bay.
INTERSTATE 40 BRIDGE: 14 DEAD
May 26, 2002: A barge hit the Interstate 40 bridge over the Arkansas River at Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, collapsing a 500-foot section of road and plunging vehicles into the water. Fourteen people died and 11 were injured.
QUEEN ISABELLA CAUSEWAY: 8 DEAD
Sept. 15, 2001: A tugboat and barge struck the Queen Isabella Causeway in Port Isabel, Texas, causing a midsection of the bridge to tumble 80 feet into the bay below. Eight people died after motorists drove into the hole.
EADS BRIDGE: 50 INJURED
April 14, 1998: The Anne Holly tow traveling through the St. Louis Harbor rammed into the center span of the Eads Bridge. Eight barges broke away. Three of them hit a permanently moored gambling vessel below the bridge. Fifty people suffered minor injuries.
BIG BAYOU CANOT: 47 DEAD
Sept. 22, 1993: Barges being pushed by a towboat in dense fog hit and displaced the Big Bayou Canot railroad bridge near Mobile, Alabama. Minutes later, an Amtrak train with 220 people aboard reached the displaced bridge and derailed, killing 47 people and injuring 103 people.
SEEBER BRIDGE: 1 DEAD
May 28, 1993: The towboat Chris, pushing the empty hopper barge DM3021, hit a support tier of the Judge William Seeber Bridge in New Orleans. Two spans and the two-column bent collapsed onto the barge. Two cars carrying three people fell with the four-lane bridge deck into a canal. One person died and two people were seriously injured.
SUNSHINE SKYWAY BRIDGE: 35 DEAD
May 9, 1980: The 609-foot freighter Summit Venture was navigating through the narrow, winding shipping channel of Florida’s Tampa Bay when a sudden, blinding squall knocked out the ship’s radar. The ship sheared off a support of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, dropping a 1,400-foot section of concrete roadway during the morning rush hour. Seven vehicles, including a bus with 26 aboard, fell 150 feet into the water. Thirty-five people died.
Pictured: This satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows the overview of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Md., on May 6, 2023. A container ship lost power and rammed into the bridge Tuesday, March 26, 2024, causing the span to buckle into the river below. (Maxaar Technologies via AP)
The bridge that collapsed into a Maryland river after a ship strike Tuesday was iconic — erected almost five decades ago, named after the author of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” and part of the very fabric of Baltimore.
Built near the spot where Francis Scott Key witnessed the bombardment of a fort that inspired what would become America’s national anthem, the namesake bridge collapsed into the Patapsco River after being struck by a cargo ship that reported losing power just before the crash. Rescue crews were looking for the bodies of six people who remained unaccounted for Tuesday afternoon and were presumed dead.
“The words ‘the Key Bridge is gone,’ it's still sinking in,” said Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. “For 47 years, that's all we've known. It's not just unprecedented; it's heartbreaking.”
Designed as an outer crossing of the Baltimore Harbor, the 1.6-mile bridge opened on March 23, 1977, as the final link in Interstate 695, known locally as the Baltimore Beltway.
The bridge was built within 100 yards of where Key witnessed the British bombardment of Fort McHenry on Sept. 12, 1814, according to the Maryland Transportation Authority.
Key stood on the deck of an American ship in the Patapsco and watched Britain's 25-hour assault on the fort. The raising of the American flag afterward inspired him to write the poem “The Defense of Fort M’Henry," according to the National Parks Service. Set to music, it became the national anthem in 1931.
Anita Kassof, executive director of the Baltimore Museum of Industry, said the choice of Key as the bridge's namesake honors the city's toughness and perseverance in the face of tragedy.
“'The Star-Spangled Banner' is an anthem to American resiliency, and Baltimore is a very resilient city,” she said. “We've been through a lot and we've gotten through a lot, and we'll get through this, too.”
Pictured: A container ship passes under the Francis Scott Key bridge Feb. 26, 2005, as it steams up the Chesapeake Bay toward the Port of Baltimore. (AP Photo/Chris Gardner)
A National Transportation and Safety Board investigator works Wednesday aboard the cargo vessel Dali, which struck and collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
Peter Knudson, National Transportation and Safety Board
National Transportation and Safety Board investigators work Wednesday aboard the cargo vessel Dali, which struck and collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
Peter Knudson, National Transportation and Safety Board