At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

Wednesday’s Environment and Public Works Committee hearing included discussion over how the $1.7 billion cost of the rebuild will be covered.

Maryland wants the federal government to pay 100%.

“We’re one country, and when one state has an emergency of this kind of impact and consequence, we’re all neighbors,” Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen said.

Legislation has been introduced in the U.S. House and Senate that would remove a 10% cost-sharing requirement for the state.

“So, what factors do you think Congress should consider when reducing the required cost share for a … project?” asked Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.

“We are asking for 100%, because that’s what we’ve done in the past, and we need it now, because we are lending contracts to start the construction now,” Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin said. “We don’t want to delay this. Every month it’s delayed is additional loss to our communities.”

Maryland leaders pushed back on the idea of toll revenues being used to help cover the cost, saying the state is losing millions of dollars in tolls since the bridge collapsed.

“We think that would be totally unfair, and I just have to be pretty honest about that,” Cardin said. “It would be penalizing our state.”

Officials testified a substantial amount of money from insurance, lawsuits and potential fines from the disaster will help offset the federal cost, but those funds could take years to recoup. The FBI launched an investigation to see if there was any criminal wrongdoing surrounding the disaster.

“Those monies that might be recovered go into the federal treasury, and that makes sense, because the way we’ve structured this is the federal government would be paying 100%,” Van Hollen said.

Officials emphasized they want to move quickly, saying there’s been an 18% increase in tunnel traffic and there’s more congestion as many drivers are using the 25-mile detour around the Baltimore Beltway.

“So, make no mistake about it, there is a serious impact until that bridge is replaced, and it’s going to take a couple of years,” Cardin said. “We recognize that.”

News4 sends breaking news stories by email. Go here to sign up to get breaking news alerts in your inbox.

Cervantes Suarez, 37, was one of seven construction workers who had been fixing potholes on the Francis Scott Key Bridge when it went crumbling down into the Patapsco River in the early morning hours of March 26. The men, who were all Latino, included his nephew, brother-in-law and friends he had known for years. They were all on break, some inside their cars and others in construction vehicles, when the bridge fell.

Cervantes Suarez, who spoke exclusively to NBC News for the first time since the bridge collapse, said he saw his family members and friends disappear into the river one by one, knowing he was next. His nephew, Carlos Daniel Hernández, whom he considered a son, was the first to fall.

In what he thought were his final moments, he turned to God.

“I thanked God for family he gave me. I asked him to take care of my wife and kids. And I asked for forgiveness for everything I’ve done,” Cervantes Suarez said in Spanish, his voice breaking.

Cervantes Suarez, the only person to survive the fall into the water, was in his truck when the bridge went down.

After his truck slammed into the river, Cervantes Suarez said the water “came up to my neck” and he was unable to open the doors to escape.

He manually rolled down the vehicle’s window to exit, swallowing water as his truck became completely inundated and sank.

“That’s when I realized what happened. I looked at the bridge and it was no longer there,” Cervantes Suarez said. 

He had seen his companions as they fell “and how the water covered them,” he said.

“I started to call out to each one of them by name,” he said.

“But no one answered me,” he said.

There was only silence, darkness and cold.

Cervantes Suarez, who cannot swim, managed to climb onto a piece of floating concrete from the wreckage, where he waited until he was rescued. He was taken to a hospital with a chest wound and released the same day. Another surviving worker rescued at the scene was in good condition and refused treatment.

Cervantes Suarez still has physical pain in his chest and his left knee and foot. The emotional toll is something that will stay with him for the rest of his life.

“I relive it all the time, the minutes before the fall and when I’m falling,” he said.

He is haunted by the fact that he told his nephew to go to his car and rest.

“If I had told him to come with me, maybe it would have been different. Maybe he would be here with us,” he said.

Cervantes Suarez is in therapy and “it has helped me, but sometimes I regress back to the first day,” he said.

He said justice to him would be for all of those responsible to “pay for the damage they have done. Because I know that money is not going to buy a hug from a father or a son.”

He said he sees the children of his brother-in-law, Alejandro Hernández Fuentes, “and I see how much they miss their dad.” He sees how much his sister-in-law misses her husband.

Cervantes Suarez said the Dali cargo ship “destroyed six families.”

The National Transportation Safety Board determined in a preliminary report released in May that the 947-foot-long Singapore-flagged cargo ship was transiting out of Baltimore Harbor when it lost power and propulsion before striking the Francis Scott Key Bridge.

The FBI has also been investigating the events that led up to the crash and whether the cargo ship crew knew the vessel had potential mechanical problems that would have made it unsafe to transit in the harbor. 

Cervantes Suarez and the families of multiple workers killed in the bridge collapse are looking to take legal action against the companies involved with the cargo ship.

“Everybody that was involved with this boat is responsible for destroying these eight families’ lives,” said L. Chris Stewart, an attorney who represents Cervantes Suarez and the families of some of the workers who died. “The boat was not seaworthy.”

“It’s an American tragedy,” he said.

“This will never go away and he still has a family to take care of and now a bunch of other people from other families that he has to take care of as well,” said Justin Miller, an attorney who also represents Cervantes Suarez and other families.

In the days following the bridge collapse, the ship’s Singapore-based owner and manager petitioned a Maryland court to limit their monetary liability for the collapse to $43.67 million.

The city of Baltimore said in a legal filing in late April against the cargo ship’s owner, Grace Ocean Private Ltd., and operator, Synergy Marine Pte Ltd., that “negligence caused them to destroy the Key Bridge, and singlehandedly shut down the Port of Baltimore, a source of jobs, municipal revenue, and no small amount of pride for the City of Baltimore and its residents.”

“None of this should have happened. Reporting has indicated that, even before leaving port, alarms showing an inconsistent power supply on the Dali had sounded. The Dali left port anyway, despite its clearly unseaworthy condition,” the city said in the filing. 

In response to the ship owner and operator’s claim for limited liability, the city said the incident was “caused by the unseaworthiness of the Dali and the negligence of the vessel’s crew and shoreside management” and that therefore, the requests for a limitation of liability should be denied.

Cervantes Suarez said he hopes people remember those who died.

“I knew all of them, they were families. They were good people, good workers and had good values,” he said.

Cervantes Suarez said he does not know why he survived the bridge collapse. 

“I think maybe there is still a goal for me,” he said.

This story first appeared on NBCNews.com. More from NBC News:

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• Jury in Alec Baldwin’s manslaughter trial shown bodycam video of chaos after ‘Rust’ shooting
• A sneak peek at the gymnastics leotards Simone Biles and Team USA will wear

While the work to remove debris from the federal channel in the Patapsco River was done by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Maryland entered into the emergency contract with Skanska USA Civil Southeast Inc. in April to remove debris from other channels that could then be used by salvage and commercial vessels after the collapse.

Skanska was chosen because it had successfully demolished the existing Nice/Middleton Bridge across the Potomac River, according to state records. The company was considered qualified and equipped to perform similar operations that were needed expeditiously in the bridge collapse.

Marshall Brown, speaking on behalf of the Laborers-Employers Cooperation and Education Trust in the Mid-Atlantic Region, spoke against the contract at a Board of Public Works meeting on Wednesday. He said Maryland had had time to consider numerous available contractors that could have been mobilized to do the work. He said the emergency no-bid contract went against a state procurement process that is designed to be fair, competitive and transparent.

“This no-bid contract does not meet the standards,” Brown said. “For those reasons, we stand firmly against the approval of this contract.”

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jun 24

Dali cargo ship leaves Baltimore for Norfolk nearly 3 months after bridge collapse

news Jun 21

$2 billion Baltimore bridge rebuild is test case for new national debate over infrastructure spending

But Bruce Gartner, executive director of the Maryland Transportation Authority, said the state’s engineers used their best professional judgment in an emergency and chose a company that already was doing work in the state.

“They were somebody that was available in the proximity, and we had knowledge that they could follow state procurement law and be responsive to the situation at hand,” said Gartner, who noted that the bridge collapse was “one of the most significant emergencies we’ve ever had.”

Procuring the debris removal through competitive bidding would have delayed the removal by a minimum of eight months, according to board documents.

At the board meeting, Moore said much work remains to rebuild the bridge, which he described as crucial to Maryland’s and the national economy.

“We need to get it rebuilt,” Moore said. “The Port of Baltimore is an essential artery for economic flow, economic activity across the country, and to put it simply, our focus on getting this done is not about nostalgia, it’s about necessity.”

The governor, a Democrat, thanked President Joe Biden’s administration for including a 100% federal cost share for the rebuild in a supplemental budget to Congress last week. Moore said he has been working to build a bipartisan coalition for the rebuild.

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Maryland has estimated the cost of a new bridge to be between $1.7 billion and $1.9 billion. The state plans to build a new span by the fall of 2028.

Shortly after leaving the Port of Baltimore early on March 26, the cardo ship Dali lost power and propulsion and crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns, causing its collapse and killing six construction workers.

That money is part of a new emergency request from President Joe Biden’s administration that essentially re-ups a broader, $56 billion ask from last October that Congress virtually ignored. Now, the Democratic administration is asking for that same pot of money again, but with billions added to deal with the bridge reconstruction and related costs.

More specifically, the Biden administration wants an additional $3.1 billion for the Department of Transportation, which would go toward rebuilding Key Bridge with the federal government picking up the entire tab. Nearly $80 million would go to the Coast Guard to compensate for its “unplanned costs” responding to the March bridge collapse, and another $33 million would be designated for the Army Corps of Engineers for expenses related to wreckage removal after the bridge was struck by a cargo ship.

The request from the Biden administration is detailed in a letter from Shalanda Young, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, addressed to House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., being sent on Friday. Young says that making this money available “would ensure that the federal government fulfills its responsibility to rebuild Baltimore without endangering America’s ability to respond to other recent or future disasters across the nation.”

The additional $4 billion also covers costs for other disasters over the past year, including a spate of tornadoes in the Midwest and the wildfires in Hawaii.

The cargo ship experienced electrical blackouts about 10 hours before leaving the Port of Baltimore and yet again shortly before it slammed into the Key Bridge, killing six construction workers, federal investigators said last month.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

The swim, originally scheduled for May, was postponed due to the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. The new window for the swim is June 24-27, weather permitting. 

Pumphrey’s route will take her through the area where the Key Bridge once stood, making it an emotional journey. 

“I’m anticipating having a lot of feelings swimming through that area,” Pumphrey said. “When I really started dreaming of this swim – and even a decade ago when I thought about what it would be like to do a long swim into the Inner Harbor, I definitely thought a lot about how it would feel to swim under the Key Bridge. So, my heart goes out to everyone who has been impacted by that.” 

The swim aims to raise funds for logistical support with 10% of the proceeds going to the “Maryland Tough, Baltimore Strong, Key Bridge Fund,” established by the Baltimore Community Foundation to assist those affected by the bridge collapse. 

“All those resources will go to anyone that’s impacted by the collapse of the Key Bridge,” Pumphrey said. 

Pumphrey, who has previously swum around the island of  Manhattan and crossed the English Channel twice, will begin her swim around 3 a.m. at the Bay Bridge. She expects the journey to take 12-13 hours to complete. 

Maryland Jun 10

Baltimore shipping channel fully reopens after bridge collapse

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 25

First cruise ship leaves Port of Baltimore since Key Bridge collapse

Throughout the swim, she must adhere to strict rules, including not touching anything or anyone. 

“So I can’t get on the boat and take a break, I can’t hang onto the boat, and I can’t hang on another swimmer. Once you are in, you are in,” she explained. 

For updates or to make a donation, visit Pumphrey’s website. NBC4 will also provide coverage of her historic swim. 

News4 sends breaking news stories by email. Go here to sign up to get breaking news alerts in your inbox.

Officials announced the full reopening in a news release Monday evening. It comes after a massive cleanup effort as crews removed an estimated 50,000 tons of steel and concrete from the Patapsco River.

The channel was blocked by wreckage of the fallen bridge, which collapsed after a container ship lost power and crashed into one of its supporting columns, sending six members of a roadwork crew plunging to their deaths. All of the victims were Latino immigrants working an overnight shift to fill potholes on the bridge.

The Port of Baltimore, which processes more cars and farm equipment than any other in the country, was effectively closed for several weeks while the wreckage was removed. Crews were able to reopen portions of the deep-draft channel in phases, restoring some commercial traffic in recent weeks.

On May 20, the wayward cargo ship Dali was refloated and guided back to port. The vessel had been stuck amid the wreckage for almost two months, with a massive steel truss draped across its damaged bow.

After the Dali was moved, crews opened a channel that was 50 feet (15 meters) deep and 400 feet (122 meters) wide. The full federal shipping channel is 700 feet (213 meters) wide, which means two-way traffic can resume, officials said. They said other additional safety requirements have also been lifted because of the increased width.

Thousands of longshoremen, truckers and small business owners have seen their jobs impacted by the collapse, prompting local and state officials to prioritize reopening the port and restoring its traffic to normal capacity in hopes of easing the economic ripple effects.

The announcement Monday means the commerce that depends on the busy port can begin ramping back up.

Officials said a total of 56 federal, state and local agencies participated in the salvage operations, including about 500 specialists from around the world who operated a fleet of 18 barges, 22 tugboats, 13 floating cranes, 10 excavators and four survey boats.

“I cannot overstate how proud I am of our team,” said Col. Estee Pinchasin, Baltimore district commander for the Army Corps of Engineers. “It was incredible seeing so many people from different parts of our government, from around our country and all over the world, come together in the Unified Command and accomplish so much in this amount of time.”

In a statement Monday, Pinchasin also acknowledged the loss of the victims’ families.

“Not a day went by that we didn’t think about all of them, and that kept us going,” she said.

The Dali lost power shortly after leaving Baltimore for Sri Lanka in the early hours of March 26. A National Transportation Safety Board investigation found it experienced power outages before starting its voyage, but the exact causes of the electrical issues have yet to be determined. The FBI is also conducting a criminal investigation into the circumstances leading up to the collapse.

Officials have said they hope to rebuild the bridge by 2028.

News4 got an up-close look at the damaged ship and the remaining portions of the Key Bridge.

The U.S. Army Corps Engineers is clearing out the Patapsco River. It has been 66 days since the ship slammed into the bridge. Last week, the largest channel reopened after tugboats escorted the damaged ship back to port.

Col. Estee Pinchasin said they’re working on the last span rigged to the Chesapeake 1000, the largest crane on the East Coast. The name was given because the crane can hold up to 1,000 tons.

“But the challenge that we’re having right now is that bottom cord of that truss is buried deep in the mud line and they’re having a very hard time accessing it,” Pinchasin said.

“What you don’t see is a tremendous amount of road wreckage and other steel that’s on the bottom of the river beds,” she added.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

‘Complex mission': Engineer says last span needs to be cut from Baltimore bridge collapse

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 25

First cruise ship leaves Port of Baltimore since Key Bridge collapse

While the debris is cleared out, a limited-access channel has been opened. It has since brought in about 70% of vessels that would normally enter the Port of Baltimore, according to Pinchasin.

For the rest of the operation, Pinchasin wants to ensure the channel is fully restored so there can be two-way traffic.

“We are going to make sure that we don’t have anything left that could be a hazard to navigation,” she said.

Pinchasin said this has been the most complex mission since her last assignment in Baltimore.

“Just hats off to the entire team. They’ve done an amazing job,” she said. “Really looking forward to getting those 2,500-ton pieces that will be separated — God willing — today out of the water.”

Royal Caribbean’s “Vision of the Seas” set sail Saturday afternoon for a five-night voyage to Bermuda.

Carnival Cruise Line announced it will resume sailing from the port on Sunday.

A social media announcement about the port declared, “Baltimore is back.”

Baltimore May 21

‘The mission's not over': Maryland gov. vows to rebuild Baltimore's Key Bridge amid progress to reopen shipping channel

Baltimore May 20

Tugboats escort ship that caused deadly Baltimore bridge collapse back to port

Maryland May 20

See It: Cargo ship that brought down Key Bridge towed back to port

The Dali, the container ship that crashed into the Key Bridge at the end of March, remained stuck under the bridge wreckage until Monday, when it was finally refloated.

On Monday, May 20, the ship was escorted by tugboats to a marine terminal 2.5 miles away.

The successful mission to transport the Dali away from the wreckage of the bridge represents a major step forward to fully reopen the Port of Baltimore. It’s expected to reopen by the end of the month.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said it was a “beautiful sight” when he didn’t see the Dali in the middle of the channel in a press conference Tuesday morning, but he’s pushing for the complete rebuilding of the Key Bridge.

“The mission’s not over. The work is not done,” Moore said. “I will not be satisfied until I can look over this same sight and see the Francis Scott Key Bridge standing again.”

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

If “optimum conditions” are in place, the process is set to begin at around 5 a.m. at high tide on Monday. 

“Safety remains the Unified Command’s emphasis, as it has been during the execution of all tasks in the nearly eight weeks of salvage operations,” officials said in a press release. 

Once the ship is free of its current position, tugboats will escort it to a marine terminal 2.5 miles away. The entire move, from refloating to transit, will take an estimated 21 hours, officials said. 

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released a graphic below that visualizes the process. 

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said the focus is on moving the ship quickly and on budget during an appearance on “Meet the Press.”

“Despite the fact that people said this could take six and nine months, I’m proud that that we’re on track that by the end of May, we’ll have that federal channel reopened,” Moore said.

Moore said the Dali would be out of the channel within days.

Last week, crews used explosives in the partial demolition of the largest remaining steel span of Baltimore’s collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge Monday evening.

Baltimore May 14

NTSB report reveals details about moments leading up to Key Bridge collapse

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 13

Explosives detonated in partial demolition of large span of Baltimore's collapsed Key Bridge

The loud explosion, captured by a News4 camera about a half mile away, broke apart the span, knocking a large, mangled portion of the steel bridge off the bow of the container ship Dali. That portion of the bridge remains visible above the Patapsco River.

Some steel beams remain embedded in the bow, and part of the roadway is still on the Dali.

News4 sends breaking news stories by email. Go here to sign up to get breaking news alerts in your inbox.

“Two were related to routine maintenance in port. Two were unexpected tripping of circuit breakers on the accident voyage,” National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy testified.

The Dali was headed to Sri Lanka, laden with shipping containers and enough supplies for a monthlong voyage. Shortly after leaving the Port of Baltimore early on March 26, the ship lost power and propulsion and crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns, killing six construction workers.

Homendy’s remarks came the day after the safety board released its preliminary report into the bridge collapse. Their full investigation could take a year or more.

The ship’s first power outage occurred after a crew member mistakenly closed an exhaust damper while conducting maintenance in port, causing one of its diesel engines to stall, according to the report. A backup generator automatically came on and continued to run for a short period — until insufficient fuel pressure caused it to kick off again, resulting in a second blackout.

While recovering from those power outages, crew members made changes to the ship’s electrical configuration, switching to a different transformer and set of breakers, according to safety investigators.

“Switching breakers is not unusual but may have affected operations the very next day on the accident voyage,” Homendy testified Wednesday morning before the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

She said the board is still gathering more information about what exactly caused the various power outages. The FBI has also launched a criminal investigation into the circumstances leading up to the collapse.

When the breakers tripped as the Dali approached the bridge, Homendy said the ship’s emergency generator kicked on. That generator can power the ship’s lights, radio and other operations, but it can’t restore propulsion.

“Without the propeller turning, the rudder was less effective,” Homendy said. “They were essentially drifting.”

While there is redundancy built into the ship’s systems, she said it’s not unlike other vessels in terms of the functions of its emergency generator and other factors. She said investigators are working closely with Hyundai, the manufacturer of the Dali’s electrical system, to pinpoint what went wrong after it left the Port of Baltimore.

“We are still on scene and evaluating everything about this accident,” Homendy said.

She also reiterated another finding from the report, which said testing of the ship’s fuel revealed no concerns about its quality.

The safety board launched its investigation almost immediately after the collapse, which sent six members of a roadwork crew plunging to their deaths. Investigators boarded the ship to document the scene and collect evidence, including the vessel’s data recorder and information from its engine room.

The preliminary report details the chaotic moments prior to the bridge collapse while crew members scrambled to address a series of electrical failures that came in quick succession as disaster loomed.

At 1:25 a.m. on March 26, when the Dali was a little over half a mile away from the bridge, electrical breakers that fed most of the ship’s equipment and lighting unexpectedly tripped, causing a power loss. The main propulsion diesel engine automatically shut down after its cooling pumps lost power, and the ship lost steering.

Crew members were able to momentarily restore electricity by manually closing the tripped breakers, the report says.

The ship was less than a quarter of a mile from the bridge when it experienced a second power blackout because of more tripped breakers. The crew again restored power, but it was too late to avoid striking the bridge.

A last-minute mayday call from the ship allowed police to stop traffic, but they didn’t have enough time to warn a team of construction workers who were filling potholes on the bridge. One man was rescued from the water. A road maintenance inspector also survived by running to safety in the moments before the bridge fell.

The last of the six victims’ bodies was recovered from the underwater wreckage last week.

On Monday, crews conducted a controlled demolition to break down the largest remaining span of the collapsed bridge, which landed draped across the Dali’s bow. The ship is expected to be refloated and guided back to the Port of Baltimore early next week, officials said Wednesday.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

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The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

___

The controlled demolition of the largest remaining steel span of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore took place about 5 p.m. Monday.

It was postponed over the weekend because of weather conditions, officials said.

Crews have been preparing for weeks to use explosives to break down the span, which is an estimated 500 feet (152 meters) long and weighs up to 600 tons (544 metric tons).

It landed on the ship’s bow after the Dali lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s support columns shortly after leaving Baltimore. Since then, the ship has been stuck amidst the wreckage and Baltimore’s busy port has been closed to most maritime traffic.

Officials said the demolition is now expected about 5 p.m. Monday. They said lightning in the area and rising tides Sunday prompted them to reschedule.

Six members of a roadwork crew plunged to their deaths in the March 26 collapse. The last of their bodies was recovered from the underwater wreckage last week. All the victims were Latino immigrants who came to the U.S. for job opportunities. They were filling potholes on an overnight shift when the bridge was destroyed.

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The controlled demolition will allow the Dali to be refloated and guided back into the Port of Baltimore. Once the ship is removed, maritime traffic can begin returning to normal, which will provide relief for thousands of longshoremen, truckers and small business owners who have seen their jobs impacted by the closure.

The Dali’s 21-member crew will stay onboard the ship while the explosives are detonated.

William Marks, a spokesperson for the crew, said they would shelter “in a designated safe place” during the demolition. “All precautions are being taken to ensure everyone’s safety,” he said in an email.

Officials said the demolition is the safest and most efficient way to remove steel under a high level of pressure and tension.

“It’s unsafe for the workers to be on or in the immediate vicinity of the bridge truss for those final cuts,” officials said in a news release Sunday.

In a videographic released last week, authorities said engineers are using precision cuts to control how the trusses break down. They said the method allows for “surgical precision” and the steel structure will be “thrust away from the Dali” when the explosives send it tumbling into the water.

Once it’s demolished, hydraulic grabbers will lift the resulting sections of steel onto barges.

“It’s important to note that this controlled demolition is not like what you would see in a movie,” the video says, noting that from a distance it will sound like fireworks or loud thunder and give off puffs of smoke.

So far, about 6,000 tons (5,443 metric tons) of steel and concrete have been removed from the collapse site. Officials estimate the total amount of wreckage at 50,000 tons (45,359 metric tons), about the equivalent of 3,800 loaded dump trucks.

Officials previously said they hoped to remove the Dali by May 10 and reopen the port’s 50-foot (15.2-meter) main channel by the end of May.

The Dali is currently scheduled to be refloated during high tide on Tuesday, officials said Sunday. They said three or four tugboats will be used to guide the ship to a nearby terminal in the Port of Baltimore. It will likely remain there for a few weeks and undergo temporary repairs before being moved to a shipyard for more substantial repairs.

The Dali crew members haven’t been allowed to leave the vessel since the disaster. Officials said they have been busy maintaining the ship and assisting investigators. Of the crew members, 20 are from India and one is Sri Lankan.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the FBI are conducting investigations into the bridge collapse.

Danish shipping giant Maersk chartered the Dali for a planned trip from Baltimore to Sri Lanka, but the ship didn’t get far. Its crew sent a mayday call saying they had lost power and had no control of the steering system. Minutes later, the ship rammed into the bridge.

Officials have said the safety board investigation will focus on the ship’s electrical system.

Salvage teams located the body of José Mynor López, 37, of Baltimore and contacted Maryland State Police, who responded along with Maryland Transportation Authority police and the FBI to recover the body.

Six members of a roadwork crew plunged to their deaths on March 26 when a container ship lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns. They were all Latino immigrants who came to the United States from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras.

“With heavy hearts, today marks a significant milestone in our recovery efforts and providing closure to the loved ones of the six workers who lost their lives in this tragic event,” Maryland State Police Superintendent Roland Butler said in a statement. “As we mourn with the families, we honor the memory of José Mynor López, Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, Maynor Yasir Suazo-Sandoval, Carlos Daniel Hernandez Estrella, and Miguel Angel Luna Gonzalez.”

The Dali container ship has been stationary amid the wreckage since the collapse, but crews plan to refloat and remove the ship, allowing more maritime traffic to resume through Baltimore’s port.

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The Key Bridge Response Unified Command announced that the victim found Wednesday was identified as Miguel Angel Luna Gonzalez, 49, of Glen Burnie, Maryland.

Six members of a roadwork crew plunged to their deaths on March 26 when a container ship lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns. Five bodies have now been recovered, but one worker, Jose Mynor Lopez, has not been found. They were all Latino immigrants who came to the United States from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras.

Salvage teams found one of the missing construction vehicles Wednesday and notified the Maryland State Police, officials said. State police investigators and Maryland Transportation Authority Police officers and the FBI responded to the scene and recovered the body inside a red truck. The state police underwater recovery team and crime scene unit also assisted.

“We remain dedicated to the ongoing recovery operations while knowing behind each person lost in this tragedy lies a loving family,” Maryland State Police Superintendent Roland Butler said in a statement. “Along with our local, state and federal partners, we ask that everyone extend their deepest sympathies and support to the families during this difficult time.”

The Dali container ship has been stationary amid the wreckage since the collapse, but crews plan to refloat and remove the ship, allowing more maritime traffic to resume through Baltimore’s port. Officials expect to have it removed by May 10, according to a Port of Baltimore news release.

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The ship, which lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns, has been stationary amid the wreckage since the March 26 collapse. Officials expect to have it removed by May 10, according to a news release Tuesday from the Port of Baltimore.

Six members of a roadwork crew plunged to their deaths in the disaster. Four bodies have been recovered while two remain missing.

Crews have identified “areas of interest” where they believe the bodies could be, but they’ve been unable to access them so far, Maryland State Police Superintendent Roland Butler said during a news conference Tuesday afternoon.

“We’re working in generalizations of areas where we think they should be, based on sonar images and other mapping techniques,” he said.

Officials declined to provide a projected timeline for how long the cleanup will continue and when the victims’ families can expect to be made whole. So far, 3,300 tons of debris have been removed from the Patapsco River.

“What we know is that we’re putting forth every single asset that we have at our disposal to bring closure to these families,” Gov. Wes Moore said during the news conference.

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Last week, officials opened a temporary deep-draft channel that allowed some stranded cargo ships to finally leave the Port of Baltimore. Others entered the port through the channel, which closed Monday so crews could focus on extracting the Dali from the wreckage.

A large span of the steel bridge came crashing down on the Dali’s bow, damaging the ship and destroying some of its containers. Removing those pieces of bridge is the next major priority in the cleanup process, officials said.

“That work is remarkably complicated,” Moore said, because cutting the spans into shorter sections could risk destabilizing other pieces of wreckage.

Crews are using the largest hydraulic grabber in the country to help in that effort, he said.

Once the Dali returns to port, officials said they expect to open a 45-foot channel by May 10 that can accommodate more large cargo ships. They plan to fully restore the port’s 50-foot main channel by the end of May.

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Thousands of longshoremen, truckers and small business owners have seen their jobs impacted by the collapse, prompting local and state officials to prioritize fully reopening the port in hopes of easing the economic ripple effects of the collapse. Officials have also established various assistance programs for unemployed workers and others impacted by the closure.

The Balsa 94, a bulk carrier sailing under a Panama flag, passed through the new 35-foot channel headed for St. John, Canada. Two more commercial ships followed later Thursday, including a vehicle carrier headed to Panama.

Their long-awaited voyages marked an important step in the ongoing cleanup and recovery effort as crews have been working around the clock to clear thousands of tons of mangled steel and concrete from the entrance to Baltimore’s harbor.

Five vessels that have been stranded for weeks are expected to finally leave Baltimore through the new, temporary channel. Other ships are scheduled to enter the port, which normally processes more cars and farm equipment than any other in the country.

Thousands of longshoremen, truckers and small business owners have seen their jobs impacted by the collapse, prompting local and state officials to prioritize reopening the port and restoring its traffic to normal capacity in hopes of easing the economic ripple effects of the collapse. Officials have also established various assistance programs for unemployed workers and others impacted by the closure.

On Thursday morning, the Balsa 94 moved through the channel guided by two tug boats, one in front and one behind. It glided slowly past the fallen bridge and grounded Dali, the massive container ship that caused the collapse when it slammed into one of the bridge’s support columns.

Pieces of the steel span are still blocking other parts of the port’s main channel, which has a controlling depth of 50 feet, enough to accommodate some of the largest cargo and cruise ships on the water.

The Balsa 94 is expected to arrive in Canada on Monday.

The Dali lost power and veered off course shortly after leaving the Port of Baltimore bound for Sri Lanka last month.

Six members of a roadwork crew — all Latino immigrants from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras — plunged to their deaths in the collapse. Four bodies have been recovered from the underwater wreckage while two remain missing.

A memorial for the victims near the south end of the bridge has grown in recent weeks. It now includes six large wooden crosses decorated with flags from the victims’ home countries and other personal items, including the hardhats and work boots that allowed them to provide for their families and chase the American dream. A painted canvas backdrop displays abstract scenes from the bridge collapse and salvage efforts as well as handwritten notes from the men’s loved ones.

“We want to send a message to the world that we’re here and we care,” said the artist, Roberto Marquez, who was visiting the memorial late Thursday morning. “We will be here working until they are all recovered.”

The new channel will remain open until Monday or Tuesday and then close again until roughly May 10. During the closure, crews will work to remove steel spans from the deck of the Dali and refloat the ship, which will then be guided back into the port, officials said earlier this week.

The port’s main channel is set to reopen next month after the Dali has been removed from the collapse site. That will allow for a normal flow of traffic to resume through the port.

But for now, the 35-foot depth is a substantial increase over the three other temporary channels established in recent weeks. It puts the cleanup effort slightly ahead of schedule, as officials previously said they hoped to open a channel of that depth by the end of April.

A hulking vehicle carrier named Carmen that is nearly as long as the Dali became the third commercial ship to traverse the channel Thursday afternoon. Viewed from the deck of a nearby passenger boat, it appeared to sail steadily between the marker buoys, dwarfing the cranes, barges and other wreckage removal equipment that was stationed nearby.

Even with commercial ships chugging past, crews continued the arduous process of clearing debris from the collapse site. On Thursday, they were using a crane apparatus to smash the fallen roadway into more manageable pieces that could be lifted from underwater with a giant claw.

In a court filing Monday, Baltimore’s mayor and city council called for the Dali’s owner and manager to be held fully liable for the bridge collapse, which they said could be devastating for the regional economy. They said the port, which was established before the nation’s founding, has long been an economic driver for Baltimore and the surrounding area. Losing the bridge itself has also disrupted a major east coast trucking route.

The filing came in response to an earlier petition on behalf of the two companies asking a court to cap their liability under a pre-Civil War provision of an 1851 maritime law — a routine procedure for such cases. A federal court in Maryland will ultimately decide who’s responsible and how much they owe.

In the meantime, both the FBI and the National Transportation Safety Board are conducting probes to determine what caused the ship to lose power and strike the bridge.

Just the sight of the Bay Bridge across the Chesapeake is enough to make some drivers grip the wheel a littler tighter. A lot of people have a hard time driving across the four-mile long bridge. Nonetheless, before the collapse of the Key Bridge, most of us wouldn’t have flinched at the sight of a massive ship going right under a bridge.

But in the early morning of March 26, the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore was struck by a cargo ship and collapsed into the water below, killing six workers. In an instant, everything changed, and now safety is top of mind.

News4 has confirmed that Maryland transportation leaders will be taking a look at better safety protections for the Bay Bridge.

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“We’re working on looking at that, in terms of the safety and the protection of the piers,” Maryland Assistant Transportation Secretary Joe McAndrew said.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said if it finds any urgent safety recommendations that need to be made following the Key Bridge collapse, it will do so immediately. If and when the NTSB makes those recommendations, McAndrew says state officials will be listening closely.

“At the end of the day, it is safe for folks to continue to travel across it. We are going to be working with our partners at the federal level that are doing an investigation of what happened at the Key Bridge,” McAndrew said. “But it is safe and we would encourage people to go and enjoy the Eastern Shore as much as possible.”

There has been a lot of talk about so-called “dolphins,” protective barriers that could redirect a ship from hitting the support piers of a bridge. In other parts of the country, those protections are becoming much more common, especially with newer bridges. In contrast, the Bay Bridge is now more than 70 years old. It has fenders to protect piers, but no dolphins.

At Sandy Point State Park next to the Bay Bridge, Luis Otero and Savanna Wheelis are reminded of the Key Bridge collapse.

“I’m terrified of bridges, so honestly, it makes me not want to go under or on bridges anymore,” Wheelis said.

Otero chimed in, “Especially now that we’ve see the [Key] bridge fall — it’s like, would it happen to this one?”

A fisherman named Zeno said he hopes the state keeps this bridge in good shape.

“I would say definitely more maintenance — yeah, for sure, maintenance. Keeping up with that,” he said.

The new channel will be 35 feet deep, which is a substantial increase over the three other temporary channels established in recent weeks. It puts the cleanup effort slightly ahead of schedule, as officials previously said they hoped to open a channel of that depth by the end of April.

Five of the seven cargo ships that have been stuck in Baltimore’s harbor will be able to pass through the new channel, including one loaded car carrier, officials said Tuesday, marking one month since the deadly disaster. Other ships are scheduled to enter the port, which normally processes more cars and farm equipment than any other in the country.

“Four weeks ago, our way of life was dealt a huge blow with the collapse of the Key Bridge,” Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said during a news conference.

The cargo ship that toppled the bridge had lost power and veered off course shortly after leaving the Port of Baltimore bound for Sri Lanka. The Dali remains grounded amid the wreckage as crews work to remove massive pieces of mangled steel that came crashing down onto the ship’s deck.

Six members of a roadwork crew plunged to their deaths in the collapse. Four bodies have been recovered from the underwater wreckage while two remain missing.

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Officials said salvage crews have now cleared enough debris — over 2,900 tons so far — to open the new channel to “commercially essential vessels” from Thursday until the following Monday or Tuesday. Ships will be required to have a Maryland pilot on board and two tugboats escorting them through the channel.

The passage will then be closed again until roughly May 10 while crews work to remove steel from the Dali and refloat the ship, which will then be guided back into the port, officials said.

The port’s main channel, with a controlling depth of 50 feet (15 meters), is set to reopen next month after the ship has been removed. That will essentially restore marine traffic to normal.

“We are going to work efficiently and we are going to work safely and we are not going to choose between the two,” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said during the news conference.

News4 sends breaking news stories by email. Go here to sign up to get breaking news alerts in your inbox.

In a court filing Monday, Baltimore’s mayor and city council called for the Dali’s owner and manager to be held fully liable for the bridge collapse, which they said could have devastating economic impacts on the region. They said the port, which was established before the nation’s founding, has long been an economic driver for Baltimore and the surrounding area. Losing the bridge itself has disrupted a major east coast trucking route.

The filing came in response to an earlier petition on behalf of the two companies asking a court to cap their liability under a pre-Civil War provision of an 1851 maritime law — a routine procedure for such cases. A federal court in Maryland will ultimately decide who’s responsible and how much they owe.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

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Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

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Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

The Fort Carroll Temporary Alternate Channel will open Saturday morning and remain in operation through Sunday.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said opening the main channel remains a top priority, along with rebuilding the Key Bridge.

‘This is about necessity’

The 1.6-mile span connected working-class communities on either side of Baltimore’s harbor, allowing steelworkers and longshoremen to easily traverse the Patapsco River without driving through downtown and providing a vital route for East Coast truckers.

“This is not about nostalgia. This is about necessity,” Moore said at a news conference Friday. “You cannot have a fully functioning Port of Baltimore if the Key Bridge is not there.”

Moore said he met with leaders in Congress from both parties in Washington on Thursday to talk about funding to rebuild the bridge. He said all of them seemed to understand its importance.

“I know we are going to get this moment right, because we’re choosing to work together,” Moore said. “That was a strike to our nation’s economy.”

President Joe Biden, who visited Baltimore in the aftermath of the collapse, also called on Congress to authorize the federal government to pay for 100% of the cleanup and reconstruction. That would require bipartisan support, and some hardline congressional Republicans have already suggested controversial demands to offset the funding.

In the meantime, crews are also working to reopen the port’s main channel, which has been blocked since the collapse. Using massive floating cranes, they’ve carted away about 1,300 tons of steel and counting, without any injuries to workers in the process, officials said.

The effort remains on track to open a temporary access channel that would allow most maritime traffic through the port to resume by the end of the month, restoring commerce to one of the East Coast’s busiest maritime transit hubs.

Until that happens, unemployed port workers and others are receiving financial assistance through a network of local, state and federal programs.

“This is a community that was literally forged out of steel,” said Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski, who grew up in suburban Dundalk, practically in the bridge’s shadow. “That same steel resolve will help us meet this moment, reopen our port and rebuild the Key Bridge.”

Crews turn focus to thousands of tons of debris on container ship

Salvage crews at the site of the collapsed bridge are turning their focus to the thousands of tons of debris sitting atop the container ship Dali. An estimated 3,000 to 4,000 tons of steel and concrete landed on the ship’s deck after it crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns and toppled the span, officials said. Crews will have to remove all that before refloating the stationary ship and guiding it back into the Port of Baltimore.

Officials displayed overhead photos of the ship with an entire section of fallen roadway crushing its bow.

So far, cranes have lifted about 120 containers from the Dali, with another 20 to go before workers can build a staging area and begin removing pieces of the mangled steel and crumbling concrete. The ship was laden with about 4,000 containers and headed for Sri Lanka when it lost power shortly after leaving Baltimore.

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Ship that caused Baltimore bridge collapse had apparent electrical issues while still docked: AP source

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Its owner recently initiated a process requiring owners of the cargo on board to cover some of the salvage costs.

Six members of a roadwork crew plunged to their deaths in the collapse and two bodies remain unaccounted for.

“We cannot forget a true and hurting fact,” Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said during the news conference. “There are still two Marylanders lost and still waiting to be returned with their families for closure.”

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The Dali departed Baltimore’s port early on March 26 laden with cargo destined for Sri Lanka. It lost power before reaching open water and struck one of the supports for Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing the span to collapse into the Patapsco River and sending six members of a road repair crew plummeting to their deaths. Two of the victims are still unaccounted for.

Authorities announced Monday evening the recovery of a fourth body from a construction vehicle in the underwater wreckage. The person’s identity wasn’t released per their family’s request, officials said.

While the ship was docked in Baltimore, alarms went off on some of its refrigerated containers, indicating an inconsistent power supply, according to the person with knowledge of the situation who was not authorized to publicly comment and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity.

Officials with the National Transportation Safety Board have said their investigation will include an inquiry into whether the ship experienced power issues before starting its voyage.

Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said last week the investigation is focused on the ship’s electrical system generally. The ship experienced power issues moments before the crash, as is evident in videos that show its lights going out and coming back on.

Homendy said information gleaned from the vessel’s voyage data recorder is relatively basic, “so that information in the engine room will help us tremendously.”

The FBI is now conducting a criminal investigation into the bridge collapse that is focused on the circumstances leading up to it and whether all federal laws were followed, according to a different person familiar with the matter. The person wasn’t authorized to discuss details of the investigation publicly and spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Apr 15

FBI opens criminal investigation into Baltimore bridge collapse

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Apr 12

Program launches to help Port of Baltimore businesses keep employees

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Apr 11

New website includes resources to help in aftermath of Maryland bridge collapse

FBI agents were aboard the cargo ship on Monday conducting court-authorized law enforcement activity, the agency said in a statement. It didn’t elaborate and said it wouldn’t comment further on the investigation, which was first reported by The Washington Post.

Meanwhile, Mayor Brandon Scott issued a statement Monday announcing a partnership with two law firms to “launch legal action to hold the wrongdoers responsible” and mitigate harm to the people of Baltimore. He said the city needs to act quickly to protect its own interests.

Scott said the city “will take decisive action to hold responsible all entities accountable for the Key Bridge tragedy,” including the owner, operator and manufacturer of the cargo ship Dali, which began its journey roughly a half-hour before losing power and veering off course.

The Dali is managed by Synergy Marine Group and owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd., both of Singapore. Danish shipping giant Maersk chartered the Dali.

Synergy and Grace Ocean filed a court petition soon after the collapse seeking to limit their legal liability — a routine procedure for cases litigated under U.S. maritime law. Their joint filing seeks to cap the companies’ liability at roughly $43.6 million. It estimates that the vessel itself is valued at up to $90 million and was owed over $1.1 million in income from freight. The estimate also deducts two major expenses: at least $28 million in repair costs and at least $19.5 million in salvage costs.

“Due to the magnitude of the incident, there are various government agencies conducting investigations, in which we are fully participating,” Synergy spokesperson Darrell Wilson said in a statement Monday. “Out of respect for these investigations and any future legal proceedings, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.”

The companies filed their petition under a provision of an 1851 maritime law that allows them to seek to limit their liability to the value of the vessel’s remains after a casualty.

Attorneys for some of the victims and a worker who survived the collapse argued Monday that the companies that own and manage the ship are taking advantage of an “archaic law” in attempting to protect their assets.

“Imagine telling that to grieving families … while they’re planning a funeral, the owner of the boat is in court,” attorney L. Chris Stewart said during a news conference in Baltimore.

The road crew “absolutely had zero warning” in the moments before the collapse, Stewart said, even though a last-minute mayday call from the ship’s pilot allowed nearby police officers to stop traffic from trying to cross the span. Three of the workers’ bodies are still missing, as crews continue the dangerous work of removing massive chunks of steel from the river.

Julio Cervantes, who survived falling from the bridge, narrowly escaped drowning by rolling down his work vehicle’s window and fighting through the frigid water despite being unable to swim, attorneys said. He clung to debris until he was rescued.

“This was all preventable,” Stewart said. “That is why we were brought in to investigate and find out what has happened and give these families a voice.”

The investigations come amid concerns about the safety of thousands of U.S. bridges and days after more than two dozen river barges broke loose and struck a closed span in Pittsburgh.

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At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

The $12.5 million program aims to prevent layoffs while recovery work continues. The program was created by executive order and authorized by emergency legislation the governor signed on Tuesday.

“We must do everything in our power to support the 8,000 Port workers whose jobs have been directly affected by the collapse of the Key Bridge — and the thousands more who have been touched by this crisis,” Moore, a Democrat, said in a news release.

The program is being run by the state’s labor department.

“The Worker Retention Program will keep Port businesses in operation and workers able to earn income and support their families as the U.S. Army Corps and others work to get the shipping channels reopened,” said Maryland Secretary of Labor Portia Wu.

Under the program, entities eligible for up to $200,000 in grants include businesses that employ up to 500 workers, unions, trade associations, and organizations that have had operations hindered or completely halted by the port slowdown.

Up to $7,500 can be spent per worker on wages or other support.

Businesses that receive funding under the program must demonstrate an effort to the fullest extent to avoid layoffs and maintain workforce hours, rates of pay, and benefits that were in effect before the port’s reduced operations.

Allowable expenses include supportive services for workers, such as subsidizing child care and transportation costs as well as payroll expenses as part of participation in the Work Sharing Unemployment Insurance Program.

The governor’s office said other relief programs that were authorized by the legislation signed into law this week will start on April 22.

One of them provides grants of up to $100,000 to eligible businesses that have had operations impacted or shipments disrupted at the port. To be eligible, businesses must demonstrate economic and financial injury through a reduction in business revenue and activity, or increased costs to business operations.

The Department of Commerce: Port of Baltimore Emergency Business Assistance Program will begin accepting applications.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Apr 10

Baltimore longshoreman turns to his art to make ends meet after bridge collapse

Maryland General Assembly Apr 8

Maryland lawmakers OK bill to aid to port employees after Baltimore bridge collapse at session's end

news Apr 8

Dali container removal will take weeks, a key to Port of Baltimore reopening

Another program will make a total of $15 million in loans and grants available to businesses that have been affected by a loss of revenue or increased costs, under the Neighborhood BusinessWorks program administered by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development.

The Small Business Grants Program will have $5 million to offer grants up to $50,000 to small businesses within a 5-mile radius of the Key Bridge, and the Business Loan Program will have $10 million to offer loans up to $500,000 to businesses impacted by the Key Bridge collapse or reduction in Port activity statewide.

The container ship Dali was leaving Baltimore, laden with cargo and headed for Sri Lanka, when it struck one of the bridge’s supporting columns last month, causing the span to collapse into the Patapsco River. Six members of a roadwork crew were killed.

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The website includes details for affected workers and businesses. It also includes major traffic updates for commuters and guidance on in-person resources available through Maryland Business Recovery Centers.

“My administration wants to make it as simple as possible for Marylanders to navigate the resources available to them to mitigate impacts of the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge,” Moore said in a news release.

The website will include updates based on the governor’s four directives for recovery, which include: giving closure to the victim’s families, clearing the channel and opening vessel traffic to the Port of Baltimore, taking care of all those affected by this crisis, and rebuilding the bridge.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Apr 10

Baltimore longshoreman turns to his art to make ends meet after bridge collapse

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Apr 9

Maryland governor to meet with members of Congress to discuss support for rebuilding collapsed bridge

news Apr 8

Dali container removal will take weeks, a key to Port of Baltimore reopening

Additional resources on the website include direct links to information on the salvage and response operations from the Unified Command, up-to-date traffic and road closure alerts from the Maryland Department of Transportation, and Maryland’s official 511 Traveler Information service.

The website will be updated regularly as additional programs become available through federal, state and local resources.

The container ship Dali was leaving Baltimore, laden with cargo and headed for Sri Lanka, when it struck one of the bridge’s supporting columns last month, causing the span to collapse into the Patapsco River. Six members of a roadwork crew were killed.

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Wendell Shannon, a second-generation longshoreman at the port, realized almost immediately following the collapse of the bridge that his financial situation was about to collapse as well.

“I knew that the paychecks would abruptly stop and I just had to figure it out just like the rest of my longshoremen brothers and sisters,” he said.

Port operations and the ships that mean work are at a standstill, and it could be months before the entire Port of Baltimore reopens.

But the port workers are a strong unit, Shannon said.

“One of the things that I’d say clicked was this quote: ‘Do what you can with what you have,’” he said. “So, I just tapped into everything that was available at the time.”

For Shannon, that meant his gift as an artist. He’s selling prints and canvasses that he’s been fortunate to paint over the years at the port, and some of the proceeds will go to families and the longshoremen at the Port of Baltimore.

He showed a commissioned piece titled “Solidarity.”

“That’s a term that we use down at the port, which is what happens to one happens to all,” Shannon said.

“An experience like this just impacted us all to come together and realize how human we are, how fragile life is,” he said.

A lot of work is happening to help the thousands of workers at the port whose pay has stopped, said Shannon, who has two sons to support.

“It’s not can we,” he said. “We have to. However long it takes, that’s what we’re gonna have to do.”

The state of Maryland estimates about 140,000 jobs are linked to the critical shipping hub. U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the port produces an estimated $2 million in wages each day for the workers who make a living there.

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At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

The stunning March 26 collapse and its impact on a key economic engine prompted lawmakers to act in the last two weeks of the session. The bill authorizes use of the state’s rainy day fund to help port employees who are out of work and aren’t covered under unemployment insurance while the port is closed or partially closed.

The bill also lets the governor use state reserves to help some small businesses avoid laying people off and to encourage companies that relocate to other ports to return to Baltimore when it reopens.

“We’re proud of the fact that we as an administration and we as a state have been able to respond to the crisis of the Key Bridge, while also not losing sight that we have an aggressive legislative package that we have to get across the finish line, and we’re proud of the results,” Gov. Wes Moore told reporters early Monday afternoon.

Moore was scheduled to sign the emergency legislation Tuesday, and put the bill into effect right away.

“This is going to make a difference for our workers,” said Sen. Johnny Ray Salling, a Baltimore County Republican.

A measure to rebuild Baltimore’s Pimlico Race Course, home of the second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown, also was approved in the last few hours of the session. Senate President Bill Ferguson said the measure was changed to address concerns about the state assuming liability for operating costs by stipulating racing purses would be used to cover losses.

“It’s not a blank check, and so this caps the liability for the state,” said Ferguson, a Baltimore Democrat.

Public safety measures were acted on this session, with some high-profile ones already approved by the General Assembly, which is controlled by Democrats. Measures to protect officials, like judges and elections officials, had already been sent to Moore, a Democrat.

Under one measure, Maryland judges would be able to shield personal information online to prevent hostile people from tracking them down. The Judge Andrew F. Wilkinson Judicial Security Act is named for the judge who was fatally shot by a man in October just hours after Wilkinson ruled against him in a divorce case.

Lawmakers also already approved a bill proposed by Moore to enable authorities to prosecute people who threaten to harm election officials or their immediate family members, as threats against elections officials are on the rise across the country in a major election year.

Ferguson said while there may not have been “groundbreaking revolutionary things,” the session was “really responding to the important moment in time that Maryland is experiencing, and that’s from the budget, to dealing with the issues around juvenile crime and … dealing with housing issues and housing affordability.”

“I think this was a session where we really had to be calm and steady and reflective of the desire for security and certainty,” Ferguson said. “I think that’s really what a lot of people are looking for right now in Maryland but elsewhere and so we have to do that in a thoughtful way.”

A lockdown at the Maryland State House in late February after an anonymous phone threat also generated some anxiety for a couple of hours in the middle of the session.

Moore’s legislative package, which included plans for addressing housing affordability, was greenlighted. Moore appeared in person earlier in the session to testify in support of measures aimed at making housing more affordable and protecting renters, telling lawmakers that Maryland is facing “a true housing crisis,” largely due to a lack of housing supply.

Moore, who previously served as the CEO of one of the nation’s largest poverty-fighting organizations, also came before lawmakers in support of legislation addressing child poverty, which also was approved.

On Friday, lawmakers gave final passage to juvenile justice reforms aimed at improving accountability and rehabilitation in response to complaints about increasing crimes like auto theft and handgun violations.

One key provision would bring children ages 10, 11 and 12 into the juvenile justice system for handgun violations, third-degree sex offenses and aggravated animal abuse. For auto thefts, children of those ages would go through the Child in Need of Services process, in which a judge can order treatment and services, but youths would not be incarcerated.

The measure also creates greater oversight of personnel with a new commission, and greater documentation is required when youths are detained.

Lawmakers gave final approval to the state’s $63 billion budget on Friday, agreeing to some tax and fee increases to help pay for education and transportation.

Each organization donated $5 million.

The fund was set up to support recovery and relief efforts for families, port workers, first responders, small businesses and communities affected by the deadly Key Bridge collapse on March 26.

“Our heartfelt condolences are with the victims of this tragedy and their families,” Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti said in a statement. “We are thankful to our first responders for their bravery and tireless work. The Ravens are honored to support the Francis Scott Key Bridge recovery efforts and affected Maryland families and businesses. We are confident that Baltimore and Maryland will keep displaying tremendous spirit and strength during this time of great need.”

“The resiliency of our city has once again been sorely tested,” Orioles owner David M. Rubenstein said. “Under the leadership of Governor Wes Moore, and in collaboration with the Ravens, the Orioles offer this contribution to support those who keep our city, our state, and our country in business.”

The majority of the bridge collapsed after a cargo ship lost control and struck one of its piers.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Mar 31

In the Key Bridge collapse, Baltimore lost a piece of its cultural identity

Maryland Apr 7

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

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 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.

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.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

Work is ongoing to open a third channel that will allow larger vessels to pass through the bottleneck and restore more commercial activity, officials announced at a news conference Tuesday afternoon. The channels are open primarily to vessels involved in the cleanup effort, along with some barges and tugs that have been stuck in the Port of Baltimore.

A tugboat pushing a fuel barge was the first vessel to use an alternate channel late Monday. It was supplying jet fuel to Delaware’s Dover Air Force Base.

Gov. Wes Moore said rough weather over the past two days has made the challenging salvage effort even more daunting. Conditions have been unsafe for divers trying to recover the bodies of the four construction workers believed trapped underwater in the wreckage.

“We promised these families that we would do everything in our power to bring them closure, but also my directive is to complete this mission with no injuries and no casualties,” Moore said.

Earlier Tuesday, Moore visited one of two centers the Small Business Administration opened to help companies get loans to assist them with losses caused by the disruption caused by the collapse.

U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin, a Democrat who accompanied Moore in meetings with potential loan applicants, said he spoke with truck drivers who relied on the port to supply their cargo. While they are already feeling the immediate economic effects of the collapse, he said, the ripple effects will be widespread — especially for small businesses, which he called “the growth engine of our nation.”

For Alex Del Sordo, who owns a marina and waterside restaurant near the collapse site, the future economic landscape is largely a mystery. So far, his businesses have been busy servicing boats involved in the recovery and salvage operation and offering discounted meals for first responders. He said he and his partner are considering applying for a low-interest loan.

He anticipates a decrease in pleasure boating because vessels moored in Baltimore’s harbor are temporarily trapped there. But he said rebuilding the Key Bridge will likely bring a large influx of labor and maritime traffic into the area and help keep some local businesses afloat.

“I think small businesses will have to be creative in what they offer,” he said.

In Annapolis, lawmakers held a hearing Tuesday afternoon for a bill authorizing use of the state’s rainy day fund to help port employees who are out of work and aren’t covered under unemployment insurance while the port is closed or partially closed. The bill also would let the governor use state reserves to help some small businesses avoid laying people off and to encourage companies that relocate to other ports to return to Baltimore when it reopens.

Lawmakers are working to pass the bill quickly in the last week of their legislative session, which ends Monday. The Maryland Senate Finance Committee voted 11-0 in favor Tuesday; it could be on the Senate floor as soon as Wednesday.

Meanwhile, crews are undertaking the complicated work of removing steel and concrete at the site of the collapse after a container ship lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns. Crews have described the mangled steel girders as “chaotic wreckage.”

U.S Army Corps of Engineers Col. Estee Pinchasin said the underwater conditions are “extremely unforgiving” for divers.

“The magnitude of this is enormous,” she said.

To open the second channel, crews used a large crane to lift wreckage out of the way.

Authorities believe six members of a road construction crew plunged to their deaths in the collapse, including two whose bodies were recovered last week. Two other workers survived.

Other vessels are also stuck in Baltimore’s harbor until shipping traffic can resume through the port, which is one of the largest on the East Coast and a symbol of the city’s maritime culture. It handles more cars and farm equipment than any other U.S. port.

Jim Roof, a longtime tugboat captain, said he’s waiting for a deeper channel to open before he can leave the harbor. He shook his head, thinking about the thousands of ships that have passed under the Key Bridge during his career.

“The system we have is pretty good,” he said, noting that in this case, the absolute worst possible timing caused a large-scale disaster.

The local nonprofit Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center has been in contact with the crews of some stationary ships, offering them support and transportation for shopping trips and other excursions.

Volunteer Rich Roca said seafaring is a tough job even in the best of times. Crew members often leave their homes and families for months on end. Some of those stuck in Baltimore are halfway around the world with no return in sight.

President Joe Biden, who has pledged significant federal resources to the recovery effort, is expected to visit the collapse site Friday.

The bridge fell after being struck by the cargo ship Dali, which lost power in the early hours of March 26, shortly after leaving Baltimore on its way to Sri Lanka. The ship issued a mayday alert, which allowed just enough time for police to stop traffic, but not enough to save a roadwork crew filling potholes on the bridge. The ship remains stationary, and its 21 crew members remain on board.

The Dali is managed by Synergy Marine Group and owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd., both of Singapore. Danish shipping giant Maersk chartered the Dali.

Synergy and Grace Ocean filed a court petition Monday seeking to limit their legal liability, a routine but important procedure for cases litigated under U.S. maritime law. A federal court in Maryland will ultimately decide who is responsible and how much they owe.

___

Contributing to this report were Associated Press journalists Brian Witte in Annapolis; Tassanee Vegpongsa in Baltimore; Sarah Brumfield in Washington; Michael Kunzelman in College Park, Maryland; and Rebecca Boone in Boise, Idaho.

For the past 11 years, Steven Eskew has run Kent Island Express, with a fleet of drivers who will take the wheel for a fee. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge poses 4.3 miles of terror for people with gephyrophobia – the fear of bridges.

The tragedy on the Key Bridge over the Patapsco River has given rise to more business over the bay, Eskew said, with 12 to 20 calls per day. 

Since the bridge collapse, many of the calls are from people simply seeking assurance about the integrity of the Bay Bridge. 

“We are P.R., information, therapists and drivers,” Eskew said as another call from a customer came in.

The process starts with a phone call at least one hour before a driver plans to cross to coordinate a meeting spot on either side of the bridge.

The driver and passengers share conversation, if the passengers would like. The company supplies sleep masks. Some people bring blankets.

“Six-foot-three, six-foot-five guys that will get in the back seat, and they’ll get on the floor and they’ll just cover themselves up,” Eskew said.

For some drivers, heading eastbound is OK but going westbound is scary.

“When you’re going westbound, it’s more open, so they can see the sea,” Eskew said. 

The company also gets motorcyclists and bicyclists across. There’s one thing the company won’t let a scared driver do: get in the trunk. “That’s a big no,” Eskew said.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Mar 31

In the Key Bridge collapse, Baltimore lost a piece of its cultural identity

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Mar 28

Baltimore bridge collapse victims: What we know about who they were

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Mar 28

‘Deep pain in my heart': Mom speaks on losing her son to Baltimore bridge collapse

News4 sends breaking news stories by email. Go here to sign up to get breaking news alerts in your inbox.

Eskew grew up in the shadow of the bridge. He said he sees its beauty but also can relate with what people fear.

“I understand what their issues are,” he said.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

The collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge is likely to send shock waves across the U.S. economy, as a key shipping route for certain goods remains snarled for the foreseeable future, officials said Sunday.

“This is not [just] a Baltimore catastrophe, not a Maryland catastrophe. This is a national economic catastrophe as well,” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

The channel that’s now blocked by the wreckage is a primary access point for the Port of Baltimore, which Moore described as among the “busiest [and] most active” in the nation.

“This is going to impact the farmer in Kentucky. This is going to impact the auto dealer in Ohio. This is going to impact the restaurant owner in Tennessee,” he said.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg echoed that sentiment.

“It’s important not just to the people and the workers of Baltimore, but to our national supply chains to get that port back up and running as quickly as possible,” Buttigieg said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”

The bridge collapsed Tuesday after a large cargo ship crashed into it, following a mayday call shortly before the collision. Two construction workers died; four are missing and presumed dead.

An operation to remove the ship, clear out debris and reopen the channel began Saturday, officials said.

“Parts of the non-federal channel are already being worked on and there is a 1,000-ton-capacity lift crane on a barge being put into place now,” Buttigieg said. There’s another 600-ton crane on the way, he added.

There isn’t yet a timeline for that salvage work to be completed, Buttigieg said. The time frame for the bridge to be rebuilt is also unclear, he said.

Federal and local officials reiterated that the operation would be lengthy and complex.

“We have a ship that is nearly the size of the Eiffel Tower that is now stuck within the channel that has the Key Bridge sitting on top of it,” Moore said. “And so this is going to be a long road. … But movement is happening.”

Why Port of Baltimore is so important

The Port of Baltimore processed a record 1.1 million containers of cargo in 2023, according to state data. That made it the ninth-busiest port in the nation based on U.S. trade volume, wrote Ryan Petersen, chief executive of Flexport, a supply chain logistics company.

It also handled nearly 850,000 shipments of cars and light trucks in 2023, more than any other port for the 13^th consecutive year, according to state data.

“This port is the No. 1 port for cars and farm equipment,” Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said Sunday on “Face the Nation.”

“So this matters to folks in rural North Carolina and Kansas and Iowa,” he added. “This matters to the global economy.”

Additionally, there are more than 15,000 people who work directly for the port, and thousands of others whose livelihoods depend on it, Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said on ABC’s “This Week.”

The Small Business Administration announced Saturday that it would make low-interest, long-term loans of up to $2 million available to local small businesses in the mid-Atlantic region affected by the bridge collapse.

The U.S. government awarded Maryland an initial $60 million in funding to clear the wreckage. The federal government will cover 90% of the costs to rebuild the bridge, said Van Hollen. He plans to introduce legislation along with Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., to cover the remaining 10%, Van Hollen said.

President Joe Biden said Tuesday that he intends for the federal government to pay for the entire cost of rebuilding the bridge, and expects Congress to support that effort.

Some lawmakers have balked at the idea, though. Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pa., called Biden’s notion of using federal funds to cover the full cost “kind of outrageous.”

While the current Congress is divided, Buttigieg expressed confidence that lawmakers would approve bridge funding on a bipartisan basis.

“If we can see Republicans and Democrats cooperate to get President Biden’s infrastructure package through, surely they can cooperate to help America and Baltimore deal with this tragedy,” he said Sunday on MSNBC.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

Sparks could be seen flying from a section of bent and crumpled steel in the afternoon, and video released by officials in the evening showed demolition crews using a cutting torch to slice through the thick beams. The joint incident command said in a statement that the work was being done on the top of the north side of the collapsed structure.

Crews were carefully measuring and cutting the steel from the broken bridge before attaching straps so it can be lifted onto a barge and floated away, Coast Guard Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath said.

Seven floating cranes — including a massive one capable of lifting 1,000 tons — 10 tugboats, nine barges, eight salvage vessels and five Coast Guard boats were on site in the water southeast of Baltimore.

Each movement affects what happens next and ultimately how long it will take to remove all the debris and reopen the ship channel and the blocked Port of Baltimore, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Mar 29

Building a new Key Bridge could take years and cost at least $400 million, experts say

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Mar 27

Could anything have stopped Key Bridge collapse? Some engineers think so.

“I cannot stress enough how important today and the first movement of this bridge and of the wreckage is. This is going to be a remarkably complicated process,” Moore said.

Undeterred by the chilly morning weather, longtime Baltimore resident Randy Lichtenberg and others took cellphone photos or just quietly looked at the broken pieces of the bridge, which including its steel trusses weigh as much as 4,000 tons.

“I wouldn’t want to be in that water. It’s got to be cold. It’s a tough job,” Lichtenberg said from a spot on the river called Sparrows Point.

The shock of waking up Tuesday morning to video of what he called an iconic part of the Baltimore skyline falling into the water has given way to sadness.

“It never hits you that quickly. It’s just unbelievable,” Lichtenberg said.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

One of the first goals for crews on the water is to get a smaller auxiliary ship channel open so tugboats and other small barges can move freely. Crews also want to stabilize the site so divers can resume searching for four missing workers who are presumed dead.

Two other workers were rescued from the water in the hours following the bridge collapse, and the bodies of two more were recovered from a pickup truck that fell and was submerged in the river. They had been filling potholes on the bridge and while police were able to stop vehicle traffic after the ship called in a mayday, they could not get to the construction workers, who were from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

The crew of the cargo ship Dali, which is managed by Synergy Marine Group, remained on board with the debris from the bridge around it, and were safe and were being interviewed. They are keeping the ship running as they will be needed to get it out of the channel once more debris has been removed.

The vessel is owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd. and was chartered by Danish shipping giant Maersk.

The collision and collapse appeared to be an accident that came after the ship lost power. Federal and state investigators are still trying to determine why.

Assuaging concern about possible pollution from the crash, Adam Ortiz, the Environmental Protection Agency’s mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator, said there was no indication in the water of active releases from the ship or materials hazardous to human health.

REBUILDING

Officials are also trying to figure out how to handle the economic impact of a closed port and the severing of a major highway link. The bridge was completed in 1977 and carried Interstate 695 around southeast Baltimore.

Maryland transportation officials are planning to rebuild the bridge, promising to consider innovative designs or building materials to hopefully shorten a project that could take years.

President Joe Biden’s administration has approved $60 million in immediate aid and promised the federal government will pay the full cost to rebuild.

Ship traffic at the Port of Baltimore remains suspended, but the Maryland Port Administration said trucks were still being processed at marine terminals.

The loss of a road that carried 30,000 vehicles a day and the port disruption will affect not only thousands of dockworkers and commuters, but also U.S. consumers, who are likely to feel the impact of shipping delays. The port handles more cars and more farm equipment than any other U.S. facility.

___

Collins reported from Columbia, South Carolina. Associated Press writers Sarah Brumfield in Washington, D.C.; Kristin M. Hall in Nashville, Tennessee; Adrian Sainz in Memphis, Tennessee; and Lisa Baumann in Bellingham, Washington, contributed.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

It all depends on factors that are still mostly unknown. They range from the design of the new bridge to how swiftly government officials can navigate the bureaucracy of approving permits and awarding contracts.

Realistically, the project could take five to seven years, according to Ben Schafer, an engineering professor at Johns Hopkins University.

“The lead time on air conditioning equipment right now for a home renovation is like 16 months, right?” Schafer said. He continued: “So it’s like you’re telling me they’re going to build a whole bridge in two years? I want it to be true, but I think empirically it doesn’t feel right to me.”

Others are more optimistic about the potential timeline: Sameh Badie, an engineering professor at George Washington University, said the project could take as little as 18 months to two years.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Mar 29

As cranes arrive at Baltimore bridge collapse site, governor describes daunting task of cleaning up

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Baltimore port crisis: World's largest container ship company, MSC, dumps diverted cargo problem on U.S. companies

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Mar 27

Could anything have stopped Key Bridge collapse? Some engineers think so.

The Key Bridge collapsed Tuesday, killing six members of a crew that was working on the span, after the Dali cargo ship plowed into one its supports. Officials are scrambling to clean up and rebuild after the accident, which has shuttered the city’s busy port and a portion of the Baltimore beltway.

The disaster is in some ways similar to the deadly collapse of Florida’s Sunshine Skyway Bridge, which was was struck by a freighter in Tampa Bay in 1980. The new bridge took five years to build, was 19 months late and ran $20 million over budget when it opened in 1987.

But experts say it’s better to look to more recent bridge disasters for a sense of how quickly reconstruction may happen.

Jim Tymon, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, cited the case of the Interstate 35W bridge in Minnesota, which collapsed into the Mississippi River in 2007. The new span was up in less than 14 months.

“It’s the best comparison that we have for a project like this,” Tymon said. “They did outstanding work in being able to get the approvals necessary to be able to rebuild that as quickly as possible.”

Tymon expects various government agencies to work together to push through permits, environmental and otherwise.

“It doesn’t mean that all of the right boxes won’t get checked — they will,” Tymon said. “It’ll just be done more efficiently because everybody will know that this has to get done as quickly as possible.”

One looming issue is the source of funding. President Joe Biden has repeatedly said the federal government will pay for the new bridge, but that remains to be seen.

“Hopefully, Congress will be able to come together to provide those resources as soon as possible so that that does not become a source of delay,” Tymon said.

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar helped to obtain funding quickly to rebuild the I-35W bridge in her state. But she said replacing the Baltimore span could be more complicated.

She noted that the I-35W bridge, a federal interstate highway, was a much busier roadway with about 140,000 vehicle crossings a day, compared with about 31,000 for the Maryland bridge.

“But where there’s a will there’s a way, and you can get the emergency funding,” Klobuchar said. “It’s happened all over the country when disasters hit. And the fact that this is such a major port also makes it deserving of making sure that this all gets taken care of.”

Badie, of George Washington University, said the cost could be between $500 million and $1 billion, with the largest variable being the design.

For example a suspension bridge like San Francisco’s Golden Gate will cost more, while a cable-stayed span, like Florida’s Skyway Sunshine Bridge, which handles weight using cables and towers, would be less expensive.

Whatever is built, steel is expensive these days and there is a backlog for I-beams, Badie said. Plus, the limited number of construction companies that can tackle such a project are already busy on other jobs.

“A project like this is going to be expedited, so everything is going to cost a lot more,” Badie said.

Hota GangaRao, a West Virginia University engineering professor, said the project could cost as little as $400 million. But that’s only if the old bridge’s pier foundations are used; designers may want to locate the new supports farther away from the shipping channels to avoid another collision.

“That’s going to be more steel, more complicated construction and more checks and balances,” GangaRao said. “It all adds up.”

Norma Jean Mattei, an emeritus engineering professor at The University of New Orleans, said replacing the Key Bridge likely will take several years. Even if it’s a priority, the process of designing the span, getting permits and hiring contractors takes a lot of time. And then you have to build it.

“It’s quite a process to actually get a bridge of this type into operation,” she said.

The Unified Command, which includes state agencies and the Coast Guard, said Thursday they have unfurled 2,400 feet of an absorbent containment device, along with another 2,400 feet of barrier to try to prevent the spread of any hazardous materials.

It’s a scenario that environmental experts are watching closely for a number of reasons, including the river’s location in a metropolitan area that plays an important role in commercial shipping, as well as for marine life and migratory birds moving northward at this time of year.

“Any time you have something like this happen, there’s a risk of some sort of hazardous material getting in the water. And I think the question really is how much and to what extent,” said Gary Belan of American Rivers, a national nonprofit that focuses on issues affecting rivers across the country.

The possibility for a major environmental problem could arise from the bridge materials that fell into the river or from the containers aboard the cargo ship, the Dali, he said. But a big concern would be if the ship’s fuel container ruptured and spilled into the water.

“If that gets … into the river we’re talking about a pretty strong environmental catastrophe at that point, particularly going out into that part of the Chesapeake Bay,” Belan said.

First responders have observed a sheen in the water near the site, according to the Unified Command, which said Thursday there was “no immediate threat to the environment.”

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Mar 29

As cranes arrive at Baltimore bridge collapse site, governor describes daunting task of cleaning up

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Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Mar 27

Could anything have stopped Key Bridge collapse? Some engineers think so.

The ship carried 56 containers with hazardous materials, and of those, 14 that carried perfumes, soaps and unspecified resin had been destroyed. It’s not clear if those materials had spilled into the water.

“We have been conducting air monitoring on the vessel and around the vessel with our contractor. No volatile organic compounds or flammable vapors were observed,” the Unified Command said in a statement posted online.

The Maryland Department of the Environment has begun sampling water up- and down-river and is on scene with first-responders to “mitigate any environmental” concerns, according to department spokesperson Jay Apperson.

Emily Ranson, the Chesapeake regional director for Clean Water Action, an environmental advocacy group, said it was too early to tell what the fallout could be. But she said the federal government should play a key role in enforcing regulations because of the interstate commerce at the port. The federal government has more tools than the state to enforce regulations, she said.

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“The big thing to keep in mind is that it certainly reinforces the fact that we need to make sure that we have adequate protections and safety precautions with shipping with our port,” she said.

The crash happened in the early morning hours Tuesday, when the Dali, which had lost power, crashed into a pillar supporting the bridge, collapsing it moments later. The crash has closed off a major U.S. port and left six construction workers on the bridge presumed dead. Two people were rescued from the site.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore called the Francis Scott Key Bridge’s collapse following a freighter collision an “economic catastrophe” and described the challenges ahead for recovering the workers’ bodies and clearing tons of debris to reopen the Port of Baltimore.

“What we’re talking about today is not just about Maryland’s economy; this is about the nation’s economy,” Moore said at a news conference, the massive crane standing in the background. “The port handles more cars and more farm equipment than any other port in this country.”

Moore went to the scene Friday and said he saw shipping containers ripped apart “like papier-mache.” The broken pieces of the bridge weigh as much as 4,000 tons, Moore said, and teams will need to cut into the steel trusses before they can be lifted from the Patapsco River.

Equipment on hand will include seven floating cranes, 10 tugboats, nine barges, eight salvage vessels and five Coast Guard boats, Moore said. Much of it is coming from the Navy.

“To go out there and see it up close, you realize just how daunting a task this is. You realize how difficult the work is ahead of us,” Moore said. “With a salvage operation this complex — and frankly with a salvation operation this unprecedented — you need to plan for every single moment.”

Water conditions have prevented divers from entering the river, Moore said. When conditions change, they will resume efforts to recover the construction workers, who were repairing potholes on the bridge when it fell early Tuesday.

“We have to bring a sense of closure to these families,” Moore said.

The Coast Guard is focused on removing what’s left of the bridge and the container ship that struck it in order to clear the port’s shipping lanes, Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath said.

Teams of engineers from the Army Corps of Engineers, the Navy and the Coast Guard — along with some private-sector experts — are assessing how to “break that bridge up into the right-sized pieces that we can lift,” Gilreath said.

Maryland’s Department of Transportation is already focused on building a new bridge and is “considering innovative design, engineering and building methods so that we can quickly deliver this project,” Secretary Paul J. Wiedefeld said.

Adam Ortiz, the Environmental Protection Agency’s mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator, said there is no indication of active releases from the ship, nor of the presence in the water of materials hazardous to human health.

Col. Roland L. Butler Jr., superintendent of the Maryland State Police, said the Federal Aviation Administration has been asked to establish a tactical flight restriction area that would begin 3 nautical miles in every direction from the center span of the bridge and extend upward to 1,500 feet.

Butler advised people to keep drones away from the area and said law enforcement is poised to act on any violations of that airspace.

The victims of the collapse were from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, officials said. At least eight people initially went into the water when the ship struck the bridge column, and two of them were rescued.

Divers have recovered the bodies of two men from a pickup truck in the river, but the nature and placement of the debris has complicated efforts to find the other four workers.

“The divers can put their hands on that faceplate, and they can’t even see their hands,” said Donald Gibbons, an instructor with Eastern Atlantic States Carpenters Technical Centers. “So we say zero visibility. It’s very similar to locking yourself in a dark closet on a dark night and really not being able to see anything.”

One of the two whose bodies were found, Alejandro Hernández Fuentes, left Xalapa, Mexico, 15 years ago to join his mother and sister in the United States, hoping to make enough money to eventually build a house and open a business back in his native country. But the 35-year-old put down roots in Maryland, and the family decided he will be buried in the United States.

“He already had a life there; that’s why they didn’t return his body,” Wenceslao Contreras Ortiz, Hernández Fuentes’ uncle, said Friday in Xalapa. He described his nephew as a hard-working father of four who doted on his mother.

Another sister still lives in Mexico but remained in close contact with Hernández Fuentes, and she is asking authorities for help securing a humanitarian visa to travel to the U.S. and say goodbye.

“She just wants to hug him for the last time,” Contreras Ortiz said.

In Baltimore, locals made morning stops at vantage points Friday to watch for the cranes. Ronald Hawkins, 71, who could see the bridge from his home, recalled watching its construction in 1972. It opened in 1977.

“I’m going to come up here every day, because I want to see the bridge coming up out of the water,” Hawkins said. “It’s a hurtin’ thing.”

President Joe Biden’s administration has approved $60 million in immediate aid, and Biden has said the federal government will pay the full cost of rebuilding the bridge, which carried Interstate 695.

Ship traffic at the Port of Baltimore remains suspended, but the Maryland Port Administration said in a statement Friday that trucks were still being processed at marine terminals.

Federal and state officials have said the collision and collapse early Tuesday appeared to be an accident that came after the ship lost power. Investigators are still trying to determine why.

The crash caused the bridge to break and fall into the water within seconds. Authorities had just enough time to stop vehicle traffic but were unable to alert the construction crew.

The loss of a road that carried 30,000 vehicles a day and the port disruption will affect not only thousands of dockworkers and commuters, but also U.S. consumers, who are likely to feel the impact of shipping delays.

Scott Cowan, president of the International Longshoremen’s Association Local 333, said the union was scrambling to help its roughly 2,400 members whose jobs are at risk of drying up.

“If there’s no ships, there’s no work,” he said. “We’re doing everything we can.”

___

Associated Press writers Sarah Brumfield in Washington, Kristin M. Hall in Nashville, Tennessee, Adrian Sainz in Memphis, Tennessee, Alba Alemán in Xalapa, Mexico, and Lisa Baumann in Bellingham, Washington, contributed to this report.

Then, she hung up the phone, not knowing that this would be the last conversation she would have with her son, 35-year-old Alejandro Hernández Fuentes. He’s been identified by authorities as one of the six workers who died after the bridge collapsed on Tuesday.

“I have a deep pain in my heart; I don’t know how to describe it,” Fuentes Ortiz said in an interview with News4.

Hours after the call with her son, she received another call, this time from her daughter-in-law, who alerted her that Hernández had been in an accident.

“At the moment I didn’t imagine it would have been so serious,” she said. “(But) when I got there and saw the broken bridge, I felt a strong pain in my heart.”

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Anguish overtook her body, Fuentes Ortiz said. She spent a day waiting for information from authorities before she learned her greatest fear was true.

“They took us to a room to talk to us, and I was shaking from head to toe. I knew what bad news they were going to give us about my son,” Fuentes Ortiz said.

Officials confirmed that Alejandro Hernández Fuentes had died. Then, on Wednesday afternoon, Col. Roland Butler Jr. of the Maryland State Police said at a news conference that they had also found the body of another victim, 26-year-old Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera.

The Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed into the Patapsco River early Tuesday, moments after it was struck by the Dali, a cargo ship. The ship had lost power prior to impact, according to preliminary information from the National Transportation Safety Board.

“I didn’t know what to say, what to think. I just wanted to die, too … of pain,” Fuentes Ortiz said, with tears in her eyes.

The men’s bodies were found shortly before 10 a.m. Wednesday inside a red pickup truck submerged in 25 feet of water, where the center portion of the bridge fell, Butler said.

Now, Fuentes Ortiz is waiting for officials to finish the autopsy so she can see her son.

“I would like to see him, hug him … tell him how much I love him,” she said.

The four other workers are presumed dead but remain missing. Their bodies and vehicles are believed to be trapped between the steel and concrete of the crumpled bridge. That debris will need to be removed to get to them.

Earlier Thursday, NBC News reported that the employees were on break in their vehicles when the bridge collapsed.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, described the tragedy as “deadly negligence.”

In the lawsuit, the group is asking for an amount of money that was not specified at the conference, as well as work permits to be able to “live with dignity in the United States.”

“We seek justice, not for ourselves, but for all essential immigrant workers and families. We hope that no one ever has to live a tragedy like this and that justice means preventing future tragedies,” said Carmen Luna, Miguel Luna’s wife.

The lawyer in the case, Matthew Wessler, explained that his goal is to bring transparency, focusing on the families’ requests. The lawyer added that this was not a simple accident because the ship was allegedly not in a condition to sail and that these lives were lost due to a lack of responsibility.

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse Jul 10

Baltimore bridge collapse survivor details how he climbed onto floating concrete to await rescue

Biden Administration Jun 28

The White House wants $4 billion to rebuild Key Bridge in Baltimore and respond to other disasters

Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse May 31

Only on 4: An up-close look at the damaged ship that hit Baltimore's Key Bridge

The tragedy occurred March 26 when the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed after the cargo ship Dalí hit it due to a suspected power outage on the ship. Six Hispanics were working on the bridge that fell into the cold waters of the Patapsco River.

The executive director of CASA, Gustavo Torres, also participated in Tuesday’s press conference, questioning the lack of security measures at the scene of the accident, as well as the absence of a rescue boat.

“Grace Ocean is choosing impunity over justice. Only for money and for their own interests, they are trying to eliminate their responsibility that they have with these families, but you know what? We are not going to allow it,” he said.

Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited responded that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.

The spokesperson added that, for the moment, the company will not offer any comment on these accusations.

Julio Cervantes Suárez was the only survivor of the tragedy. See his story here.

The club held a moment of silence before their Opening Day game against the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday afternoon before the national anthem.

This moment was another show of unity in the city after the bridge collapsed on Tuesday.

The national anthem was then performed by the Morgan State University choir as a replica flag of the one that flew over Fort McHenry when Francis Scott Key wrote the Star Spangled Banner dropped in the outfield.

Two people were rescued from the collapse and officials said six others were presumed dead. The bridge was hit by a cargo ship, though many lives were likely saved because the ship’s operator issued a mayday call moments before the crash.

The National Transportation Safety Board has begun its investigation into what happened on board the ship, while families of those missing are still waiting for answers.

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