(IntegrityPress.org) – Recovery workers have begun the task of removing shipping containers from the deck of the stricken Dali ship, which remains stuck in the Fort McHenry Channel after hitting the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26. The crash, which destroyed the bridge, is believed to have killed six of the eight construction workers present on the bridge at the time, while two survived with some injuries. Three bodies have since been found.
The ship, along with its nearly two dozen crewmembers, has remained entangled with part of the bridge ever since. On Sunday, April 7, the Key Bridge Response 2024 Unified Command explained that by working to shift some of the containers, it would allow access for workers to then remove parts of the bridge currently pressing against the bow of the 980-foot ship. Clearing these parts should allow the ship to be moved, clearing more of the waterway and theoretically allowing the ship to be sailed home, although currently the crew is expected to remain in situ while the investigation is in its early days.
Temporary shipping channels have been opened up to the side of the trapped Singaporean vessel, allowing some smaller vessels to get past the wreckage. Authorities are eager to open the channel to shipping as much as is feasible, as the channel and the port it serves, the Port of Baltimore, play a key role in both the local and national economy. The port usually acts as the primary port for cars imported to the U.S. and receives approximately 500 shipping containers per year. Clearing the debris will also pave the way for the rebuilding of the bridge, itself a vital part of local infrastructure that would normally see approximately 34,000 vehicles pass over it each day.
So far, more than 50 divers and a dozen cranes are involved in the work to clear the wreckage, which President Biden has viewed on a recent helicopter tour after he promised to help Baltimore in its efforts to rebuild the bridge. He also stopped to meet the families of the six dead workers, all of whom are reported to have been migrants from Latin America.
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