Engineers are working to remove the debris of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore and are anticipating that they will be able to enable ships to go in and out of the Port of Baltimore before the end of this month.
The bridge fell down rapidly on March 26 after being hit by the cargo ship Dali, which lost power shortly after leaving Baltimore, heading for Sri Lanka. The ship sent out an urgent call for help with just enough time for police to stop traffic, but not enough to save a roadwork crew filling potholes on the bridge. Authorities believe six workers fell into the Patapsco River and died; two bodies have been found so far. Two others survived.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers revealed a “tentative timeline” on Thursday, stating in a news release that they anticipate opening a limited access route to the port in the next four weeks measuring around 280 feet wide by 35 feet deep (85 meters by 11 meters). The route would support one-way traffic in and out of the port for barge container service and some vessels that transport automobiles and farm equipment to and from the port.
The USACE stated that they are aiming to reopen the permanent federal navigation channel, 700 feet wide by 50 feet deep (213 meters by 15 meters), by the end of May, which would restore full port access.
“Our main goal is to fully open the federal channel, and we will carry out this work with caution and precision, with safety as our top priority,” Lt. Gen. Scott Spellmon, USACE commanding general said in the news release.
Spellmon admitted that the timelines are “ambitious” and may still be affected by bad weather or “changes in the complexity of the wreckage.”
The announcement was made just before a planned visit by President Joe Biden, who is set to visit the collapse site and meet with the victims' relatives on Friday.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden will also receive an operational update from U.S. Coast Guard and Army Corps of Engineers officials.
On Thursday, Isabella Casillas Guzman, who heads the U.S. Small Business Administration, visited Baltimore to meet with business owners, along with state and local leaders. Guzman stated that a federal program providing loans to small businesses affected by the bridge collapse has received 500 applications so far.
She mentioned that businesses involved in transportation and supply chain logistics will probably suffer the most in the short term, but the long-term effects will be widespread.
“It’s a broad impact,” she said after a roundtable discussion at an office in Baltimore that was opened recently to assist affected business owners.
Baltimore’s port handles more cars and farm equipment than any other similar facility in the country, and the disaster has caused logistical issues up and down the East Coast.
The Maryland Senate unanimously passed a bill on Wednesday night allowing the governor to use the state’s rainy day fund to aid unemployed port workers. The bill now moves to the Maryland House, which could approve it this week.
The Norwegian shipping company Wallenius Wilhelmsen, which operates a center in Baltimore, stated that it believes it has incurred losses ranging from $5 million to $10 million due to the port closure. One of its ships is currently trapped in Baltimore’s harbor.
Workers are striving to remove the steel debris and retrieve the remaining bodies, which has been made even more challenging by recent adverse weather. They have established two temporary passages primarily for ships involved in the cleanup.
However, the water is so murky that rescue divers cannot see beyond one to two feet ahead of them, according to Governor Wes Moore at a news conference on Thursday afternoon. Each diver is now partnered with an operator who uses three-dimensional drawings and other tools to guide them in a “buddy system,” he said.
U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath mentioned that there are seven commercial vessels stranded in the port with their crews aboard. The ships will remain unable to depart until a temporary channel deep enough for their departure is opened.
