Salvage crews have begun removing containers from the ship that collapsed Baltimore’s Key bridge

Advertisement

Advertise with us

BALTIMORE (AP) — Salvage crews on Sunday began removing containers from the deck of the cargo ship that crashed into and collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, an important step toward the full reopening of one of the nation’s main shipping lanes.

Read this article for free:


or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Subscribe and receive a limited-edition Free Press branded hat or tote.

Digital Subscription

One year of digital access for only $205*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/04/2024 (864 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BALTIMORE (AP) — Salvage crews on Sunday began removing containers from the deck of the cargo ship that crashed into and collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, an important step toward the full reopening of one of the nation’s main shipping lanes.

The removal of the containers from the deck of the Dali would continue this week as weather permits, according to a statement from the Key Bridge Response Unified Command. Crews were progressing toward removing sections of the bridge that lie across the ship’s bow to eventually allow it to move, the statement said.

In total, 32 vessels have passed through temporary channels on either side of the wreckage, officials said.

The site of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge and the container ship that toppled it, Dali, are seen from the debris retrieval vessel Reynolds, April 4, 2024, in Baltimore. (Kaitlin Newman/The Baltimore Banner via AP)
The site of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge and the container ship that toppled it, Dali, are seen from the debris retrieval vessel Reynolds, April 4, 2024, in Baltimore. (Kaitlin Newman/The Baltimore Banner via AP)

“The Unified Command is concurrently progressing on its main lines of effort to remove enough debris to open the channel to larger commercial traffic,” U.S. Coast Guard Capt. David O’Connell said in the statement.

The Dali has been trapped under mangled steel in the Patapsco River since it slammed into the bridge on March 26, killing six workers.

President Joe Biden took a helicopter tour Friday of the warped metal remains and the mass of construction and salvage equipment trying to clear the wreckage. The president also met for more than an hour with the families of those who died.

Eight workers — immigrants from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador — were filling potholes on the bridge when it was hit and collapsed in the middle of the night. Two men were rescued and the bodies of three others were recovered in subsequent days. The search for the other victims continued.

Officials have established a temporary, alternate channel for vessels involved in clearing debris. The Army Corps of Engineers hopes to open a limited-access channel for barge container ships and some vessels moving cars and farm equipment by the end of April, and to restore normal capacity to Baltimore’s port by May 31, the White House said.

In this photo provided by the Key Bridge Response 2024 Unified Command, response crews begin removing shipping containers from the deck of the cargo ship Dali using a floating crane barge at the site of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, Sunday, April 7, 2024, in Baltimore. (Key Bridge Response 2024 Unified Command via AP)
In this photo provided by the Key Bridge Response 2024 Unified Command, response crews begin removing shipping containers from the deck of the cargo ship Dali using a floating crane barge at the site of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, Sunday, April 7, 2024, in Baltimore. (Key Bridge Response 2024 Unified Command via AP)

More than 50 salvage divers and 12 cranes are on site to help cut out sections of the bridge and remove them from the key waterway.

Report Error Submit a Tip

World

LOAD WORLD ARTICLES