US awards Maryland US$60 million to rebuild collapsed Baltimore bridge
- Formal details of funding is expected on Thursday evening. Federal award comes after Maryland governor sought the funding
- Governor promised that ‘best minds in the world’ were working on plans to clear debris, recover four missing bodies and investigate what went wrong
The US government awarded the state of Maryland US$60 million in federal emergency relief on Thursday in response to the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, an extraordinarily fast disbursement after such a disaster.
The bridge came tumbling down early on Tuesday after a massive cargo freighter that had lost power ploughed into the structure in Baltimore Harbour. Two bodies have been recovered and four other missing people are presumed dead.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore had requested the US$60 million earlier on Thursday and the US Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration approved the request within hours.
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Such funding typically takes days, but US President Joe Biden told reporters on Tuesday that he directed the federal government to “move heaven and earth” to quickly rebuild the bridge.
“These funds serve as a down payment toward initial costs, and additional Emergency Relief programme funding will be made available as work continues,” the transport department said in a statement.
Initial estimates of the reconstruction costs, which is likely to be paid by the federal government, are at US$600 million, economic software analysis company IMPLAN said.
But federal officials have told Maryland lawmakers the cost could soar to at least US$2 billion, The Hill reported, citing a source familiar with the discussions.
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The transport department has vowed to act swiftly after getting a request for the “quick release funding” but has said it will need legislation from Congress to fund building a replacement bridge.
Moore said in a statement regarding his request the funds would support “mobilisation, operations, and debris removal, laying the foundation for a rapid recovery”.
Maryland said it may seek additional emergency funding as damage assessments progress.
Bound for Sri Lanka, the Singapore-flagged container ship Dali reported losing power and the ability to manoeuvre before hitting a support pylon of the bridge on Tuesday.
The impact brought most of the bridge crashing into the mouth of the Patapsco River almost immediately, blocking shipping lanes and forcing the indefinite closure of the Port of Baltimore, one of the busiest on the US eastern seaboard.
Massive barges carrying cranes streamed to the site on Thursday to begin the challenging work of removing twisted metal and concrete as a first step towards reopening the key shipping route blocked by the wreckage of the span.
Moore promised 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”.
US President Joe Biden has pledged the federal government would pay the full cost of rebuilding the bridge.
“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.”
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The devastation at the site of the collapse, which happened when the powerless cargo ship Dali struck a pillar supporting the bridge, is extensive. Divers recovered the bodies of two men in a truck near the bridge’s middle span on Wednesday, but officials said they have to start clearing the wreckage before anyone could reach the bodies of four other missing workers.
“We’re now moving from a recovery mode to a salvage operation. Because of the superstructure surrounding what we believe are the vehicles and the amount of concrete and debris, divers are no longer able to safely navigate or operate around that,” Colonel Roland L Butler Jnr, superintendent of Maryland State Police, said at a news conference on Wednesday.
“We have exhausted all search efforts in the areas around this wreckage, and based on sonar scans, we firmly believe that the vehicles are encased in the superstructure and concrete,” Butler said.
Butler asked for patience, saying: “There’s no definitive timeline”.
National Transportation Safety Board officials boarded 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 have 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 spokesman, told reporters. One was slightly injured and needed stitches, but “all are in good shape and good health”, he said.
The victims, who were part of a construction crew fixing potholes on the bridge, were from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, Butler said. At least eight people initially went into the water when the ship struck the bridge column, and two of them were rescued on 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 did not get a chance to alert the construction crew.
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The Singapore-flagged Dali, which is managed by Synergy Marine Group, was headed from Baltimore to Sri Lanka. It is owned by Grace Ocean and Danish shipping giant Maersk said it had chartered it.
Synergy extended sympathies to the victims’ families in a statement early on Thursday.
“We deeply regret this incident and the problems it has caused for the people of Baltimore and the region’s economy that relies on this vitally important port,” Synergy said, noting that it would continue to cooperate with investigators.
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.”
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The huge vessel was carrying nearly 4,700 metal shipping containers, 56 of them with hazardous materials inside. Thirteen of those were destroyed, officials said. However, industrial hygienists who evaluated the contents identified them as perfumes and soaps, according to the Key Bridge Joint Information Centre.
“There was no immediate threat to the environment,” the centre said.
Booms have been placed in the area to control the spread of any oil that seeped into the water and state environmental officials were also sampling the water on Thursday.
The sudden loss of a motorway that carries 30,000 vehicles a day and the port disruption will affect not only thousands of dockworkers and commuters but also US consumers, who are likely to feel the impact of shipping delays.
The governors of New York and New Jersey have offered to take on cargo shipments that have been disrupted. Their respective governors, Kathy Hochul and Phil Murphy, said in a statement Thursday that ports in their states can handle additional shipments in an attempt to minimise supply chain disruptions.
Additional reporting by Associated Press
