Cranes Arrive to Begin Wreckage Removal from Deadly Baltimore Bridge Collapse: Progress Update

Cranes Arrive to Begin Wreckage Removal from Deadly Baltimore Bridge Collapse: A crane that can lift 1,000 tons, described as one of the largest on the Eastern Seaboard, appeared near the site of a collapsed highway bridge in Baltimore as crews prepared Friday to begin clearing the wreckage, which has stymied the search for four workers who are missing and presumed dead and blocked ships from entering or leaving the port.

According to officials, a second crane capable of lifting 400 tons is expected to arrive on Saturday.

The twisted metal and concrete remnants of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, as well as the cargo ship that struck it this week, will be removed with these machines.

By Monday, four heavy lift cranes will be at the site, Gov. Wes Moore told reporters.

In his remarks, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore described the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge after a freighter collision as an "economic catastrophe" and described the challenges of recovering the workers and clearing tons of debris.

Several floating cranes, ten tugs, nine barges, eight salvage vessels, and five Coast Guard boats will be at the wreckage site in the coming weeks to clear the channel.

One of Moore's biggest challenges is that the Key Bridge over the wrecked Dali cargo ship weighs between 3 to 4,000 tons, so the salvage team must cut the truss into sections "safely and responsibly" before they can lift those pieces out of the water.

“What we're talking about today is not just about Maryland's economy; this is about 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."

Cranes arriving to start removing wreckage from deadly Baltimore bridge collapse https://t.co/C5fzEyV90B

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The moment you go out there and see it up close, you realize just how challenging this is. "You realize how difficult the work is ahead of us," Moore explained. "In a salvage operation of this magnitude - and frankly, a salvation operation of this magnitude — you must plan every single detail."

There were already two bodies recovered from a pickup truck in the Patapsco River, but the nature and placement of the debris have complicated efforts to locate the four workers still missing.

“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.”

A team of engineers from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Navy, and the Coast Guard are assessing how to "break that bridge up into pieces that we can lift," Gilreath said.

In order to remove debris, divers must cut it up, Gibbons explained, likening it to playing pick-up sticks since items at the bottom cannot move without disturbing the entire pile.

"We use underwater burning and underwater cutting solutions to make those pieces smaller so that when we do cut them away, we don't affect the entire pile," said Gibbons, who is not involved in the Baltimore project.

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.

The EPA's mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator, Adam Ortiz, said there is no indication of active releases from the ship or of hazardous materials in the water.

A tactical flight restriction area that will begin at 3 nautical miles from the center span of the bridge and extend up to 1,500 feet has been requested by the Federal Aviation Administration, according to Colonel Roland L. Butler Jr., superintendent of the Maryland State Police.

The public should stay away from the area with drones. Law enforcement will take action against violators.

The port handles more cars and more farm equipment than any other port in the country, said Moore, a Democrat.

President Joe Biden's administration approved $60 million in immediate aid. Biden has said the federal government will cover the full cost of rebuilding the bridge.

The Maryland Port Administration said Friday that trucks were still being processed at marine terminals despite the suspension of ship traffic at the Port of Baltimore.

Investigators are still trying to determine why the collision and collapse occurred after the ship lost power early Tuesday.

The victims, who were part of a construction crew fixing potholes on the bridge, were from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, officials said. According to officials, at least eight people were initially swept into the water when the ship struck the bridge column, and two were rescued.

Moore said Friday, “I’ll be proposing the creation of a permanent state scholarship for the children of surviving spouses of transportation workers who lost their lives on this job.”

Authorities had just enough time to stop vehicle traffic before the bridge collapsed and fell into the water.

Dali, managed by Synergy Marine Group and owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd., was headed from Baltimore to Sri Lanka.

Thousands of dockworkers and commuters will be affected by the closure of a road that carried 30,000 vehicles per day, along with U.S. consumers who will likely be affected by shipping delays.

ILAB Local 333 president Scott Cowan said the union is scrambling to help its roughly 2,400 members whose jobs are at risk.

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

Nearly 4,700 shipping containers were aboard the huge vessel, 56 of which contained hazardous materials. Fourteen containers were destroyed, officials said. In accordance with the Key Bridge Joint Information Center, industrial hygienists identified the contents as perfumes and soaps, which did not pose an immediate threat to the environment.

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

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