Catherine Rusoff
BALTIMORE – The Dali, the 948-foot-long cargo ship, was stuck in the Patapsco River for weeks after it collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge, is set to be refloated on Monday. It’s a huge milestone in the effort to salvage the wreckage of the disaster and reopen access to the Port of Baltimore.
Tugs will then escort the ship to a local terminal. The milestone comes nearly eight weeks since the faulty ship hit the bridge, causing it to collapse and killing six construction workers, cordoning off the port and demolishing part of I-695.
Unified Command, a multi-agency effort in the Key Bridge response, said its priority is to restore the full depth and width of the Fort McHenry canal, allowing for pre-collapse traffic patterns in and out of the harbor. The team aims to do this by the end of May.
How is the ship being refloated?
The process of refloating the ship and the rescue effort have been delicate and dangerous, involving giant floating cranes to move debris and relocate shipping containers, and using explosives to move tons of mangled steel and roads.
Unified Command began preparing for the refloating operation on Sunday afternoon, with the goal of catching high tide on Monday morning.
“The refloating and transit sequence is deliberately designed to ensure that all response personnel around the M/V Dali maintain control of the vessel, from refloating, transiting and docking at a local marine terminal,” Unified Command said in the Saturday.
Preparations included releasing the anchors, deballasting the ship and detailed inspections to detect any obstructions.
What happens next?
The relocation of the ship, which is approximately the length of three football fields, brings Unified Command closer to reopening the federal canal.
A giant hydraulic claw will make this possible, removing pieces of the bridge embedded in the Patapsco River bed.
At the local terminal, any remaining wreckage from the ship would be unloaded and taken to Sparrows Point for recycling or disposal.
Dali’s 22-person crew has remained on the ship since the March 26 accident. They do not have the appropriate visas to leave the ship, our media partner, the Baltimore Flag Reportsso they rely on organizations to bring them essential items.
It was not immediately clear if and when the disabled ship would be able to sail again to leave the port of Baltimore.
Investigations ongoing, legal actions initiated
Since the collapse, the FBI It is NTSB launched separate investigations into the incident and the city of Baltimore announced a lawsuit against the owners and managers of the cargo ship, alleging negligence.
Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown was approved last week to hire five outside law firms to assist in litigation over the collapse.
The Dali lost power several times before leaving Baltimore Harbor and crashing into the Key Bridge, according to a report. preliminary report released last week by the National Transportation Safety Board.
The suit alleges that the Singapore-based owners of the Dali were negligent in letting the ship leave the port of Baltimore without resolving known power issues.
A final NTSB report, which would include conclusions and safety recommendations, is expected to be published within the next year or two. You can read the full NTSB preliminary report here.
