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| The cargo ship that hit the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. Erin Schaff/The New York Times |
The five minutes before a bridge collapsed
“Hold all traffic on the Key Bridge.”
The command from an officer in Baltimore’s busy port was one of the first warnings of a disaster that experts now predict will change how ships and bridges function around the world. But after the cargo ship Dali lost power, there were precious few minutes to act.
In those minutes, many people — from the ship’s crew, who sent out a mayday signal, to the transportation authority police officers who stopped traffic heading onto the Francis Scott Key Bridge — did what they could to avert catastrophe, most likely saving many lives. But several factors made catastrophe all but inevitable.
Related: Investigators found and identified two workers who died in the bridge collapse. Four are still missing.
 March 28, 2024 |
ReplyDeleteBaltimore bridge disaster hits supply lines
As much as 2.5 million tons of coal, hundreds of cars made by Ford and General Motors, as well as lumber and gypsum are threatened with disruption following the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge on Tuesday, with 6 people presumed dead.
Docks in New Jersey and Virginia face the threat of being overwhelmed by traffic that’s being forced away from Baltimore, one of the busiest ports on the US East Coast. It’s crucial for the vehicle industry with European carmakers such as Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and BMW operating facilities in and around the port. It’s also the second-largest terminal for US exports of coal, with a shutdown potentially hitting shipments to India.
Six presumed dead after a U.S. bridge collapsed
ReplyDeleteA massive container ship struck a bridge pillar while leaving the Port of Baltimore early in the morning on Tuesday, causing the bridge to plummet into the water below. The Coast Guard last night suspended search efforts for six construction workers who had been fixing potholes on the bridge and were presumed dead.
The ship lost power and issued a mayday call shortly before the collision, giving officials a brief window to keep cars off the 1.6-mile span. Two other workers were rescued from the water, and none of the 24 crew members on the ship were injured.
It is not known why the ship, a nearly 1,000-foot-long cargo vessel called the Dali that was bound for Sri Lanka, hit the bridge. But an inspection last year showed that the vessel had a deficiency related to “propulsion and auxiliary machinery.”
Maryland’s governor said that the collision was a terrible accident and that there was no credible evidence of a terrorist attack. The collapse will indefinitely close a port that’s first in the U.S. for deliveries of autos and light trucks.