The collapse blocked most shipping to and from thePort of Baltimore for 11 weeks. Maryland GovernorWes Moore called the event a "global crisis" that had affected more than 8,000 jobs.[6] The economic impact of the closure of the waterway has been estimated at $15 million per day.[7]
Maryland officials have said they plan toreplace the bridge by late 2030 at an estimated cost of $1.7 billion to $1.9 billion.[8]
Dali, though larger than most earlier ships, carries less than half the cargo of today's largest container ships.[9] Bigger ships can cause bigger disasters, such as the 1,300-foot (400 m) Taiwanese-flagged vesselEver Given in the2021 Suez Canal obstruction.[9]
The bridge crossed one of the busiest shipping routes in the United States: the lowerPatapsco River, which connects thePort of Baltimore to theChesapeake Bay and theAtlantic Ocean.[11][13] In 2023, the port handled more than 444,000 passengers and 52.3 million tons of foreign cargo valued at $80 billion.[11] It was the second-largest U.S. port forcoal, and had been the leading port for automobiles and light trucks for 13 straight years, handling more than 847,000 vehicles in 2023.[15][16] It employed 15,000 people and indirectly supported 140,000 others,[17] annually helping to generate $3.3 billion in wages and salaries, $2.6 billion in business revenue, and $400 million in state and local tax revenue.[14]
MVDali is acontainer ship registered inSingapore, and at the time of the collision (in maritime terms,allision[a]) wasoperated by Synergy Marine Group[20] andowned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd,[21] both based in Singapore. ANeopanamax vessel completed in 2015,Dali has a length of 980 feet (300 m), a 157-foot (48 m)beam, and a 40-foot (12.2 m)draft.[22] Danish shipping companyMaerskcharteredDali upon its delivery.[23] Once in service,Dali had undergone 27 inspections at ports globally,[24][25] including two in 2023: one in June inSan Antonio, Chile, where a fuel-pressure gauge was repaired, and the second in September by theU.S. Coast Guard in New York, which found no problems.[26][27][25]
In March 2024, Dali was crewed by 20 Indian nationals and one Sri Lankan.[28] The ship traveled from Panama to New York, arriving on March 19,[29] then sailed to theVirginia International Gateway inPortsmouth, Virginia.[30] The ship left Virginia on March 22 and the following day arrived in Baltimore,[30] where it underwent engine maintenance.[31][32] Ananonymous source told theAssociated Press that an alarm on the ship's refrigerated containers went off while the ship was docked, likely due to an inconsistent power supply.[33]
When the bridge was completed in 1977, the largest container ships could hold 2,000 to 3,000twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers.[34] In the 2000s, the governments of Maryland and Baltimore, which relied on port operations to replacelost manufacturing jobs,[35] seized the opportunity provided by thePanama Canal'sexpansion: they installed newcranes anddredged the harbor to accommodate the up-to-14,000-TEU vessels that began passing through the canal in 2016.[36][37] At the time of its collision,Dali was loaded nearly to its 10,000-TEU capacity with 4,700 forty-foot containers.[34]
Federal regulations requirenational highway bridges to conform to standards established by theAmerican Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, but AASHTO did not specify how strong bridges should be to withstand ship collisions until 1994.[44] Federal regulations forbridge protection systems from ship collisions were updated in 1991 after theSunshine Skyway Bridge collapse in 1980, but existing bridges were exempted by agrandfather clause, and the Francis Scott Key Bridge piers lacked the level of fender system orisland barriers required of newer bridges.[45][42][46] However, engineering experts debate whether such bridge protection systems could have prevented the collapse givenDali's size.[47][48] The preliminaryNational Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report noted that inspections conducted in March 2021 and May 2023 to National Bridge Inspection Standards found the bridge in satisfactory condition.[49]
Upstream view of the bridge in 2015;Dali hit the fourthpier from left.[50]MVDali immobilized by the wreckage
Dali left the Port of Baltimore at 12:44a.m.EDT (04:44UTC) on Tuesday, March 26, 2024,[51] bound forColombo, Sri Lanka.[52] The ship had two localharbor pilots on board.[50] Following standard operating procedure in Baltimore,tugboats that piloted the ship from itsberth were released once the ship was in the channel.[53][54][14] At 1:24a.m.,[55][56] the ship suffered a "complete blackout" and began to drift out of the shipping channel; abackup generator supportedelectrical systems but did not provide power to thepropulsion system.[57] At 1:27a.m., amayday call was made from the ship,[56] notifying theMaryland Department of Transportation that the crew had lost propulsion and control of the vessel and that a collision with the bridge was possible.[58]
One of the pilots requested that traffic be stopped from crossing the bridge immediately.[59][60][61][62] The ship's lights went out and came on again some moments later, then again went off and returned just before impact as smoke once again began rising from thefunnel.[50][63] At the pilot's request, theMDTA Police dispatch asked officers to stop traffic in both directions at 1:27:53a.m.; outer loop (eastbound/northbound) traffic was stopped at the south side after 20 seconds, while inner loop (westbound/southbound) traffic was stopped at the north side by 1:28:58a.m., around the time of the collapse.[64] TheMaritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) reported that the ship droppedanchor before hitting the bridge, as part of its emergency procedures.[59]
At 1:28:45a.m.,[65][66][67] the ship struck the southwest pier of the central truss arch span, at roughly 8 knots (9.2 mph; 15 km/h).[68]AIS data showed the ship traveling at a speed of 8.7 knots (10.0 mph; 16.1 km/h) at 1:25a.m. before departing the channel and slowing to 6.8 knots (7.8 mph; 12.6 km/h) by the time of the collision two minutes later.[63][69]
Within seconds of the collision, the bridge broke apart in several places,[70] leaving sections protruding from the water and the roadway's approaches cut off.[68] The main span fell onto the ship'sbow and a section of it came to rest there.[59][71] The bridge strike and partial collapse were recorded on video.[72][73]
Multiple vehicles were on the bridge at the time it collapsed, though initially no one was believed to be inside them.[68] Workers were repairing potholes on the bridge[68] and were in their vehicles on a break at the time of the collapse.[74] A resident living near the bridge recalled being awakened by deep rumbling that shook his residence for several seconds following the collapse, which he said "felt like anearthquake".[68]
Emergency teams began receiving911 calls at 1:30a.m.[59] TheBaltimore Police Department was alerted to the collapse at 1:35a.m. Large rescue and recovery efforts were begun.[72] The Coast Guard deployed boats and a helicopter as part of rescue efforts.[59] Fiftypublic safety divers in eight teams were dispatched to search for people who fell into the river.[75][59]
This timeline is based mostly on the National Transportation Safety Board's preliminary analysis of events from the ship'svoyage data recorder and the Maryland Transportation Authority Police log.[76][77][78]
The collapsed portion of the bridge comprises the three spans under the metal truss, and three others to the northeast (left of the images, inDundalk, Maryland; right isHawkins Point, Baltimore).[59]
2016 photo of the pier struck by the shipAerial view of the damage
The force of the impact with the pier was estimated to be between 27 and 52 million pounds-force (120 and 230 MN) byThe New York Times writers, who used equations from theAmerican Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials publicationGuide Specifications and Commentary for Vessel Collision Design of Highway Bridges. In comparison,Saturn V rockets generated 7.9 million pounds-force (35 MN) ofthrust at launch.[80]
The bridge's continuous truss relied on its overall structure to maintain integrity; in engineering terms, it wasfracture critical, meaning it had no redundancy against removal of support of any particular part of it.[65] The collision destroyed its southwest main truss pier, causing the south and central spans to collapse, which led to the collapse of a northern span.[72][81] Each failure sequence took seconds, and within 30 seconds the entirety of the trussed spans, and three others, had fallen.[82]
The bridge was determined to be fully compliant with thebuilding code[which?] when it collapsed.[59] The bridge haddolphin and fender protection against ship impact, but these protections were insufficient.[42][83][84]
OfDali's 4,700 shipping containers, 13 were damaged in the collision.[27] Two fell into the water, neither of which carried hazardous substances.[85]Dali sustained hull damage above the water line and the ship was impaled by remnants of the bridge superstructure (estimated to be 3,000 to 4,000 tonnes of bridge wreckage),[86][87] which pressed it against the channel floor.[88][89] The ship remained watertight,[86] and the shipping company initially claimed there was no water pollution directly from the ship.[90][91] Authorities installed 2,400 feet (730 m) ofwater containment booms[92] around the ship after a sheen was detected in the waterway, which was believed to have been produced by 21 US gallons (17 imp gal; 79 L) of oil that leaked from abow thruster on the ship.[93] On March 27, the NTSB announced an investigation into ahazmat spill resulting from breached containers aboardDali, including some of the 56 containers that carried about 764 tons of hazardous materials: primarilycorrosives,flammable substances (includinglithium batteries), andClass 9 materials.[76][94][87]
NOAA reported a water temperature of 47 °F (8 °C) at the time of the collapse.[68]
Two people were rescued from the river: one was in "very serious" condition and the other uninjured.[95] One of those rescued was aMexican national.[21] The lawyer of one survivor said his client, who was in his car as the bridge collapsed, escaped by manually rolling down his window.[96]
Six people, all part of the maintenance crew working on the bridge, were reported missing and presumed dead after a Coast Guard search was suspended.[2][59][97][98][99] Their bodies were all recovered, from underwater, by May 7.
On March 27, the bodies of a 35-year-old Mexican national and a 26-year-oldGuatemalan national[2][100] were found inside a red pickup truck 25 feet (7.6 m) below the mid-section of the bridge.[101]
On April 5, the body of a 38-year-oldHonduran national was recovered from a submerged vehicle.[102]
On April 14, another body was recovered from a submerged construction vehicle. The family of the victim requested the identity of the deceased be withheld.[4]
By that point, the underwater searches had found five submerged vehicles, including three passenger vehicles and atransit mixer. On April 30, theMaryland State Police announced that they had identified "areas of interest" where the bodies of the two remaining missing victims could be. These areas had been inaccessible to recovery crews, before April 13.[103]
On May 1, a fifth body, belonging to Miguel Angel Luna Gonzalez, 49, ofGlen Burnie, was recovered from a red truck that had been among the missing construction vehicles.[104][105]
On May 7, the sixth and final body, belonging to José Mynor López, 37, of Baltimore, was recovered.[106]
Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations require that construction companies keepskiffs available at construction sites over waterways. Coast Guard officials said they did not know whether the company that employed the highway workers had one available. Satellite imagery at the time of the bridge collapse does not appear to show one present. The company declined to respond to press inquiries about whether a boat was available.[107]
Dali's crew and the two pilots sustained no serious injuries.[90] One crew member was slightly injured and required some stitches.[85] Groups such as the Baltimore International Seafarers' Center made efforts to support the crew members as they remained on the boat,[108] including providing them withWi-Fi hotspots.[109]
An evidence response team from the FBI examines a segment of the bridge several hours after the collapse.Officials coordinate response and rescue efforts at theMaryland Transportation Authority headquarters on the day of the collapse
NTSB personnel boarded the ship late on March 26 and obtained thevoyage data recorder (VDR), which would help investigators develop a timeline of events leading up to the collision.[114][115] Several possible factors were being considered, including the possibility that contaminated fuel or an improper grade of fuel had caused the loss of the ship's power.[116][117][118] At aSenate Commerce Committee hearing on April 10, NTSB ChairJennifer Homendy said the agency would not likely issue its preliminary report until the first week of May. She said investigators were gathering data about the ship's electrical system, examining itscircuit breakers with the assistance ofDalishipbuilderHyundai Heavy Industries, and comparing the bridge's design and pier protection to current regulatory standards.[119][120]
On April 15, FBI agents searchedDali in a criminal investigation to establish whether the crew left the port aware that the ship had problems with its electrical or mechanical systems.[121][122][33] On May 8, anonymous sources toldThe Wall Street Journal that the FBI investigation is looking for potential violations of theSeaman's Manslaughter Statute, which can carry up to a 10-year prison sentence for ship officers, crew, ship owners, and charterers when violations result in deaths.[123][124]
The preliminary NTSB report was released on May 14.[125][126] The report stated that the ship had two power outages in port: the first occurred 10 hours before departure when an enginedamper (mistakenly closed by a crew member when working on the diesel enginescrubber system) preventedexhaust gas from flowing out of theship stacks and caused the engine tostall; the second outage occurred when insufficientfuel pressure caused the ship's backup generator to shut off—which led the crew to modify the ship'selectrical configuration by switching from atransformer and breaker system that had been in use for several months to a different system on the accident voyage.[127][128] However, the report did not draw a connection between the in-port outages and the voyage outages, and stated that the NTSB's investigation of the electrical configuration was ongoing.[125][129] The report also stated that fuel testing found no evidence of contamination.[125][127][130] In testimony before theHouse Transportation Committee on May 15, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy stated that the in-port power outages and voyage outages were "mechanically distinct" and that switching circuit breakers after an outage is a common practice, but that changing the electrical configuration may have resulted in the voyage outages.[131][132]
On September 12, the NTSB released a 41-page report detailing tests completed onDali in the weeks after the collapse; it said investigators had found a looseelectrical cable in the transformer and breaker system that could have caused electrical problems.[133]
On September 21, FBI agents in Baltimore boardedMaersk Saltoro, a ship owned byDali owner Synergy Marine Group. No reason was given publicly for the search of the ship,[134] though experts noted that its make and manufacture was close enough forMaersk Saltoro to be considered asister ship toDali.[135]
The debris from the collapse blocked maritime access to virtually the entirety of thePort of Baltimore; nearly 30 ships had signaled the port as their destination, and more than 40 were trapped.[136] Only one part of the Port of Baltimore was unaffected: the Tradepoint Atlantic marine terminal atSparrows Point, on the seaward side of the Key Bridge.[137] Tradepoint Atlantic said on April 3 that it began preparing for an influx of redirected ships and estimated that it would unload and process 10,000 vehicles over the next 15 days.[138]
Maryland governor Wes Moore declared a state of emergency shortly thereafter,[59] and Maryland Secretary of TransportationPaul Wiedefeld ordered the suspension of all shipping to and from the Port of Baltimore[139] until further notice; trucking facilities remained operational.[68] At 4:15a.m., theFederal Aviation Administration imposed a 5-nautical-mile (5.8 mi; 9.3 km)temporary flight restriction around the incident site.[140] Maersk, which chartered the vessel,[141] saw the price of its shares decline by about 2% when trading opened atNasdaq Copenhagen on March 26.[142]
Map of the three temporary channels as of April 20, 2024
The collapse blocked access to all of Baltimore's marine terminals except the Sparrows Point terminal, closing them to shipping.[137][143] This ledshipping lines to seek alternate ports for ships en route to Baltimore and forcedshippers to attempt to arrange for land transportation from those ports before unloaded cargoes would incur detention anddemurrage charges—i.e., late fees.[144] Four shipping lines—CMA CGM, thenCOSCO andEvergreen on March 26, andMediterranean Shipping Company on March 28—declaredforce majeure, allowing them to terminate theircontracts of carriage with clients once cargo is delivered to diversion ports.[144] Maersk, however, announced that it would arrange transport for cargo from diversion ports to its clients.[145][110]
Stellantis andGeneral Motors said they would divert vehicle imports to other ports, andToyota reported that some of its exports could be affected.[146] The bridge collapse also isolated the terminals ofMercedes-Benz,CSX at Curtis Bay, andConsol Energy.[147] On April 1, CSX announced a new route for diverted Baltimore imports arriving at thePort of New York and New Jersey;[148] the railroad completed its first shipments of diverted cargo three days later. On April 3,Norfolk Southern announced its own dedicated service to haul diverted imports from New York to Baltimore.[149]
On May 7, Maersk North America's president said the company would decide within 5 to 10 days whether to restart operations in Baltimore if the channel were reopened by the end of the month.[154]
Eastbound I-695 traffic is forced to exit at exit 1 (MD 173). The empty sign mounts on the left formerly held a sign designating the mainline as tolled I-695.MD 10 approaching I-695, with references to the Key Bridge and eastbound points on the highway sign patched over
I-695 remains closed between theMD 173 and Route 695C interchanges.[155] Most traffic is detoured alongI-95 andI-895, which crossBaltimore Harbor in tunnels, both of which prohibit hazardous materials and impose size restrictions.[50][156][157] Vehicles that are carryinghazardous loads or are too large for the tunnels are detoured along the western section of I-695,[158] bypassing from the north and west the entire city of Baltimore. Warnings of traffic delays were initially issued to motorists as far away asVirginia.[68]
Cruise ships originally bound for Baltimore docked in other cities. For example,Carnival Legend docked inNorfolk, Virginia, on March 31 and seventy buses took passengers back to Maryland. On April 4,Vision of the Seas was diverted to Norfolk, where its 2,200 passengers boarded buses for Baltimore.[159]
Governor Moore said that 8,000 jobs could be affected by the bridge's collapse and called the disaster a "global crisis". The waterway's closure is causing an estimated daily loss of $15 million.[6] On March 30, theSmall Business Administration (SBA) announced that it would make low-interest and long-term loans of up to $2 million to small businesses hurt by the bridge collapse in theMid-Atlantic states,[160] and the SBA received 500 applications by April 4.[161]
Governor Wes Moore signs the PORT Act into law on April 9, 2024
In theMaryland General Assembly,Bill Ferguson, thepresident of the Maryland Senate, and state delegateLuke Clippinger introduced emergency legislation to provide money to workers and local businesses affected by the disaster.[162] After discussions with the Moore administration, Ferguson added a provision to establish a state scholarship for the children of the maintenance workers killed in the collapse.[163] On April 8, the General Assembly passed a bill to draw upon the state'srainy day fund to pay port employees who were thrown out of work and are not covered by stateunemployment insurance;[164][165] the governor may also use the fund to help some small businesses avoid layoffs and to encourage companies that shift to other ports to return to a reopened Baltimore port.[164] Governor Moore signed the bill the following day.[166] On April 12, Moore issued anexecutive order under the law to start a $12.5 million program operated by theMaryland Department of Labor to prevent layoffs by port businesses.[167] On June 14, multiple state agencies announced that they would stop accepting applications for the temporary worker and business assistance programs implemented by the PORT Act on June 28.[168]
Republican state senatorsBryan Simonaire andJohnny Ray Salling introduced another bill to allow the governor to declare a year-long state of emergency after damage to critical infrastructure, but it would also have eliminated the authority to seize private property for government use, as now allowed under a state of emergency;[169] Simonaire withdrew the bill after discussions with the Moore administration.[163]
Local roads experienced higher commercial truck traffic, leading to increased wear and tear.Dundalk andSparrows Point had a 25% increase inpotholes following the bridge's collapse.[170]
On April1, Grace Ocean Private and Synergy Marine Group filed a joint petition in theMaryland U.S. District Court to limit their liability to about $43.6million under theLimitation of Liability Act of 1851.[176] Chief JudgeJames K. Bredar is overseeing the proceedings. Grace Ocean and Synergy Marine are represented byDuane Morris andBlank Rome.[177] The legal process could last up to a decade and has been described as likely being "one of the most contentious marine insurance cases in recent decades".[175][178] On April 17, Grace Ocean Private filed ageneral average declaration to require cargo owners to cover part of the salvage costs.[179]
On April15, Baltimore's mayor and city council hired personal injury firmSaltz Mongeluzzi & Bendesky and civil rights firmDiCello Levitt to pursue legal action against Grace Ocean, Synergy Marine, andMaersk.[180] On April 22, city officials filed papers accusing Grace Ocean Private and Synergy Marine ofnegligence,[181] claiming the ship wasunseaworthy and had an incompetent crew who ignored warnings of an inconsistent power supply before leaving port.[182] If the vessel is proved unseaworthy, through mechanical or human deficiencies, the judgement will void the entities' insurances.[183]
On April 25, a Baltimore-based publishing company sued Grace Ocean and Synergy Marine in aclass-action lawsuit that seeks damages for local businesses whose revenues were reduced by the collapse.[184][185]
On September 18, Brawner Builders, the construction company that employed workers who died in the collapse, sued Grace Ocean and Synergy Marine for negligence and soughtdamages.[187] One day later,Ace American Insurance sued the companies, seeking to recoup $350 million it said it paid to the Maryland Transportation Authority as part of its property insurance policy.[188] Lawsuits alleging negligence were also filed against the companies by the families of six workers who died in the collapse, the family of one worker who survived, and the road work inspector on the bridge at the time of collapse.[188][189][190]
Also on September 18, theU.S. Justice Department sued the two companies, alleging negligence, mismanagement, andjury-rigging ofDali's mechanical and electrical systems. The agency sought $100 million, partly to recoup federal expenditures for the emergency response and channel restoration, and partly forpunitive damages.[191][192] On October 24, the department announced that Grace Ocean and Synergy Marine had agreed to pay $101.9 million to settle the government's civil claims.[193][194]
On September 24, 2,200 members of theInternational Longshoremen's Association filed a class-action lawsuit against the two companies seeking compensation for lost wages.[195] That same day, the Maryland state government sued the companies, seeking punitive damages and compensation for the total replacement cost for the bridge; expenses for the emergency response, salvage, bridge demolition, unemployment insurance, and business interruption relief; lost revenue from tolls, fees, and taxes; other economic losses; and environmental and infrastructure damage.[196]
Work on the new bridge was scheduled to start January 7, 2025, after the approval byCongress of theDecember 2024 continuing resolution which included $2 billion in funding. On February 4, 2025, the Maryland Transportation Authority unveiled a preliminary design for a cable-stayed bridge, Maryland's first. It is to have two travel lanes in each direction, with a 1,600-foot (490 m) main span and 600-foot (180 m) supporting towers. Its clearance over the shipping channel will be at least 230 feet (70 m), higher than the old bridge's 185 feet (56 m). The bridge will be longer so the roadway can reach the increased height with an acceptably gradual incline. Demolition of the remaining bridge began in July 2025. The demolition is expected to take nine months.[citation needed]
On May 15, the BBC reported that the 21 crew members of Indian and Sri Lankan nationality remained below deck onDali. They had not been permitted to disembark as they did not have the necessaryentry visas or shore passes, and the FBI had confiscated their mobile phones.[197] In June, all members of the crew were allowed to disembark. Ten members of the crew were allowed to leave the United States, but eleven higher-ranked crew members were ordered to stay in Baltimore indefinitely as legal proceedings continue.[198][199]
PresidentJoe Biden[200] was briefed on the disaster within hours of the collision.[68]U.S. Secretary of TransportationPete Buttigieg contacted Maryland governor Wes Moore and Baltimore mayorBrandon Scott to offer his department's support.[201] Moore addressed the families of the victims in Spanish, saying, "Estamos contigo, ahora y siempre [we are with you, now and always]".[202]Maryland Center for History and Culture vice president David Belew said, "Our harbor, port and many families are fundamentally changed" by the disaster.[10] On March 27, Moore and Biden thankedDali's crew for transmitting the mayday call warning of the ship's power failure and the impending collision.[203][204] On March 28, three officers of the MDTA were recognized at the opening game of theBaltimore Orioles for their role in stopping traffic before the bridge collapsed.[93]
President Biden joins Governor Moore and local officials to speak near the bridge
Biden visited the site on April 5; he surveyed the wreckage fromMarine One and was later briefed by officials from the local government, the Coast Guard and USACE. He pledged the support of the federal government for a bridge replacement and the recovery effort "every step of the way", adding that "the nation has your back". He also met with families of the victims.[205][206]
TheMexican embassy in the U.S. provided consular assistance to the families, setting up a dedicated phone line for affected Mexican nationals.[207] Mexican presidentAndrés Manuel López Obrador said the disaster highlighted the contribution of migrants to the US economy and "demonstrates that migrants go out and do risky jobs at midnight".[208] Rafael Laveaga Rendón, head of the consular section, travelled to Baltimore to help the workers' families.[209] It has been confirmed that one of the rescued was fromMichoacán, while the two Mexican nationals whose bodies were recovered were from Michoacán andVeracruz.[209]
On April 11, Moore announced that the state government had launched a website with information about federal, state, and local government programs related to the bridge collapse.[210] That month, members of the Baltimore County Latino community created a memorial for the construction workers at the south end of the bridge.[211]
TheU.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) took the lead in removing the fallen portions of the bridge.[212] TheU.S. Navy hired heavy-lift cranes to remove submerged wreckage, including theWeeks 533 and the Donjon Marine Co.'sChesapeake 1000. The latter, dubbed the "largestcrane ship on the East Coast",[6][213] can lift 1,000 short tons (890 long tons; 910 t).[214] The designatedsalvor is Resolve Marine.[88] Thirty-two USACE personnel and 38 Navy contractors were deployed to the scene.[92] More than 1,100 engineering specialists were[needs update] to join them.[215] Seven floating cranes, ten tugboats, nine barges, eight salvage vessels, and five Coast Guard boats were deployed around the bridge.[216]
On March 30, engineers began removing the first piece of the bridge from the river.[217][218][219] On April 1, the Coast Guard opened a temporary passage for commercial work vessels involved in recovery and clearing efforts, with a controlling depth of 11 feet (3.4 m), a horizontal clearance of 264 feet (80 m) and a vertical clearance of 96 feet (29 m),[220] and was approving ships' passage case by case.[221] The next day, the first work vessel used the alternate channel: a tugboat pushing a fuel barge toDover Air Force Base inDelaware. A second channel was opened the next day, as work continued on a third channel.[222][223] On April 7, salvage crews began to remove containers fromDali.[224][225] By April 16, the salvage operation had removed more than 1,000 tons of steel from the waterway,[226] and by April 19, 120 of the 140 containers necessary to build astaging area to remove steel and concrete fallen onto the ship'sdeck.[227]
By April 26, some 3,000 of a total of about 50,000 tons of wreckage had been pulled from the river, and 171 commercial vessels had passed through the four alternate channels. The salvage and recovery flotilla had grown to 36 barges, 27 tugboats, 22 floating cranes, 10 excavators, 1 dredger, 1 skimmer, and 3 Coast Guard cutters. The workforce included more than 250 uniformed and civilian workers from 53 agencies from across the U.S. plus 553 contractors handling dive, crane and vessel operations.[228] By April 30, another 300 tons of wreckage had removed. MPA officials said salvors were expected to disentangle and removeDali by May 10.[103]
On May 13, after a delay for weather,[229] explosives were detonated to remove the part of the bridge span that was resting onDali's bow.[230] The hull had not been breached below the waterline, enabling the ship to stay afloat and easing the salvage operation.[231] On May 20, the ship was disentangled from wreckage materials, pulled from the mud shoal upon which it had been partly grounded, and tugged away from the bridge.[232][233]
August 2024 view showing the open channel and missing bridge segment
One week after the collapse, USACE officials said clearing the Fort McHenry Channel to reopen the port would probably take weeks rather than months. They announced a tentative schedule to a limited-accessone-way channel forbarges androll-on/roll-off ships by the end of April and the entire channel by the end of May.[234][235][236][237] Salvage experts also said the reopening could happen as early as May.[238]
By April 20, three temporary channels had been opened, enabling roughly 15% of pre-collapse shipping to pass. The channels were named for local landmarks; from north to south, they are Sollers Point,Fort Carroll, andHawkins Point Shoal.[239][240]
On April 25, salvage crews opened a fourth temporary channel—at 35 feet (11 m), the deepest yet—about a week ahead of schedule.[241] An MPA spokesman said the fourth channel could serve about half of the ships that use the port, though the Coast Guard would determine just which vessels may pass.[242][243] Four of the eleven ships that had been trapped in port used the fourth channel to depart by April 29, when the channel was closed again to allow salvage crews to resume removing bridge wreckage.[244]
On May 20,Dali was disentangled from the bridge wreckage and removed from the vicinity of the bridge.[245] Four days later, officials said the channel would be fully restored to its original 700 ft (200 m) wide x 50 ft (15 m) deep clearance by June 10.[246]
On June 10, the channel reopened, 11 weeks after the bridge's collapse.[247]
On March 27, Buttigieg said that theU.S. Department of Transportation would apply the findings of the NTSB investigation of the bridge collapse to "regulation, inspection, design or funding of bridges in the future". He noted that the bridge was not designed to withstand the impact of a vessel ofDali's weight (about 95,000tonnes empty).[45] In 2022, the FHWA finalized new data specifications for state inspectors to use for bridge pier protections that are scheduled to take effect in 2026.[44]
When reporters asked about a proposal to require tugboats to pilot vessels aroundcritical maritime infrastructure, officials with the Coast Guard, the Department of Transportation, theCybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and theU.S. Department of Homeland Security Joint Information Center either referred the inquiries to different agencies or said their agencies lacked jurisdiction to create such a regulation.[53][54] By April 11, the Maryland Port Administration had begun consulting tugboat operators about potential modifications to protocol, which would depend upon recommendations from the NTSB and the Coast Guard.[248]
Hours after the collapse, President Biden said that the federal government would pay for the entire cost of reconstructing the bridge.[249] In June 2024, the Maryland Department of Transportation accepted bids to design and build a replacement bridge by fall 2028 at an estimated cost of $1.7 billion to $1.9 billion.[8][250]
^abA crash between two moving vessels is acollision; a crash between a moving vessel and a stationary object, such as a bridge, is anallision.Maritime law treats the two differently: in the latter, the moving vessel is generally presumed to be at fault.[18] This usually makes it easier to prove liability, shortening post-crash legal wrangling.[19]
^abKoeze, Ella (March 28, 2024)."The Dali Is a Big Ship. But Not the Biggest".The New York Times.Archived from the original on March 30, 2024. Source credits: "Sources: "The Geography of Transport Systems," by Jean-Paul Rodrigue; VesselFinder; the Empire State Building; the Eiffel Tower; ShipHub; Maryland Port Administration".
^abBaraniuk, Chris (March 26, 2024)."Why the Baltimore bridge collapsed so quickly".Wired.Archived from the original on March 26, 2024. RetrievedMarch 27, 2024.Steel structures aren't as strong as you might think—and the immense power of a container ship shouldn't be underestimated.
^abcdefghStreamTime Live (March 26, 2024)."Official Footage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge Collapse".www.youtube.com.Archived from the original on March 27, 2024. RetrievedMarch 27, 2024.Container ship hits the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland on March 26, 2024 at approximately 1:30 am. The StreamTime LIVE camera captured the collapse. There is no audio.
^"Petition for exoneration from or limitation of liability"(PDF). United States District Court for the District of Maryland. April 1, 2024.Archived(PDF) from the original on April 5, 2024. RetrievedApril 8, 2024.Petitioners, through undersigned counsel Duane Morris LLP and Blank Rome LLP...
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Press conference with NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy, March 26, 2024,C-SPAN
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