Maryland Gov. Wes Moore warned Thursday of a “very long road ahead” to recover from the loss of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge as the Biden administration approved $60 million in immediate federal aid following the deadly collapse.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was moving the largest crane to the East Coast to help remove the bridge debris, Moore said, so work can begin to clear the channel and reopen the key shipping lane . The machine, which can lift up to 1,000 tons, was due to arrive Thursday evening, and U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen said a second crane with a capacity of 400 tons could arrive Saturday.
The state is “deeply grateful” for the federal funding and support, Moore said at an evening news conference.
Moore vowed Thursday that “the best minds in the world” are working on plans to remove debris, move the cargo ship that crashed onto the bridge from the canal, recover the bodies of the four remaining workers presumed dead and investigate what went wrong .
“The government is working hand in hand with industry to investigate the area, including the wreck, and remove the vessel,” said Moore, a Democrat, who said the quick aid is needed to “lay the foundation for a rapid recovery.” President Joe Biden has promised that the federal government will pay the full cost of rebuilding the bridge.
“This job won’t take hours. This job will not take days. This work will not take weeks,” Moore said. “We have a very long road ahead of us.”
Van Hollen said 32 members of the Army Corps of Engineers are examining the collapse scene and 38 Navy contractors are working on the rescue operation.
The devastation left after the helpless cargo ship struck a support pillar early Tuesday is extensive. Divers recovered the bodies of two men from a pickup truck in the Patapsco River near the bridge’s center span Wednesday, but officials said they must begin clearing the wreckage before anyone can reach the bodies of four more missing workers.
State police said that, based on sonar scans, the vehicles appear to be encased in a “superstructure” of concrete and other debris.
National Transportation Safety Board officials boarded the ship, the Dali, to retrieve information from its electronic devices and documents and to interview the captain and crew members. Investigators shared a preliminary timeline of events before the crash, which federal and state officials said appeared to be an accident.
“The best minds in the world are coming together to gather the information we need to move forward quickly and confidently in our response to this collapse,” Moore said Thursday.
Of the 21 crew members on board the ship, 20 are from India, Randhir Jaiswal, spokesman for the nation’s foreign ministry, told reporters. One was slightly injured and needed stitches, but “they are all in good shape and good health,” Jaiswal said.
The victims, who were part of a construction crew repairing potholes on the bridge, were from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, Butler said. At least eight people initially went into the water when the vessel hit the bridge column, and two of them were rescued Tuesday, officials said.
The crash caused the bridge to break and fall into the water within seconds. The authorities barely had time to stop vehicle traffic, but had no chance to alert the construction team.
During the Baltimore Orioles’ home opener Thursday, Sgt. Paolo Pastorek, Cpl. Jeremy Herbert and Officer Garry Kirts of the Maryland Transportation Authority were honored for their actions in stopping traffic on the bridge and preventing further loss of life.
The three said in a statement that they were “proud to carry out our duties as officers of this state to save as many lives as we could.”
The Dali, operated by Synergy Marine Group, was headed from Baltimore to Sri Lanka. It is owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd. and was chartered by Danish shipping giant Maersk.
Synergy expressed its condolences to the families of the victims in a statement late Thursday.
“We deeply regret this incident and the distress it has caused the people of Baltimore and the region’s economy that relies on this vital port,” Synergy said, noting that it will continue to cooperate with investigators.
Scott Cowan, president of the International Longshoremen’s Association Local 333, said the union is working to help its approximately 2,400 members whose jobs are at risk of drying up until shipping can resume in the Port of Baltimore.
“If there are no ships, there is no work,” he said. “We are doing everything we can.”
The huge ship, almost as long as the Eiffel Tower, was carrying nearly 4,700 containers, 56 of which contained hazardous materials. Fourteen of those were destroyed, officials said. However, industrial hygienists who evaluated the contents identified them as perfumes and soaps, according to the Key Bridge Joint Information Center.
“There was no immediate threat to the environment,” the center said.
About 21 gallons (80 liters) of oil from a bow thruster on the ship is believed to have caused a sheen in the waterway, Coast Guard Adm. Shannon Gilreath said Thursday.
Barriers were placed to prevent any spread, and state environmental officials were sampling the water.
There are also currently containers hanging dangerously off the side of the ship, Gilreath said, adding, “We’re trying to keep our first responders … as safe as possible.”
Divers sent to work beneath the bridge debris and container ship will encounter challenging conditions, including limited visibility and shifting currents, according to officials and expert observers.
“Debris can be dangerous, especially when you can’t see what’s in front of you,” said Donald Gibbons, an instructor with the Eastern Atlantic States Carpenters Technical Centers.
The sudden loss of a highway that carries 30,000 vehicles a day and the port disruption will affect not only thousands of port workers and commuters, but also U.S. consumers, who will likely feel the impact of shipping delays.
The governors of New York and New Jersey have offered to accept shipments of goods that have been disrupted, to try to minimize supply chain problems.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who met with supply chain officials Thursday, said the Biden administration was focused on reopening the port and rebuilding the bridge but did not set a timeline for those efforts.
According to the World Association for Waterborne Transport Infrastructure, from 1960 to 2015 there have been 35 major bridge collapses worldwide due to ship or barge collisions.