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Dive brief:
- The Federal Highway Administration announced $60 million in emergency “quick release” funds. for the Maryland State DOT to rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge, according to a statement Thursday.
- The federal DOT described the immediately available funding as “a down payment on seed funds,” adding that more emergency relief money will be made available as work continues. President Joe Biden pledged Tuesday that the federal government would pay to rebuild the 1.6-mile-long stretch, which served as a major freight and travel corridor.
- The FHWA money will help restore “essential transportation” to the area, through debris removal, demolition, detours and emergency repairs. The FHWA also provides technical assistance and site evaluations while administering emergency contracts for a new bridge. The US Army Corps of Engineers is helping management of navigable debris.
Diving knowledge:
Located on the southeast side of Baltimore’s I-695 Bypass, the Key Bridge collapsed early Tuesday morning when the Dali, a 984-foot cargo ship, struck one of its piers. Six construction workers employed by Hunt Valley, Md.-based Brawner Builders, who were performing road maintenance on the bridge at the time of the impact, are believed to have died when they fell into the waters of the Patapsco River.
The bodies of Alejandro Hernández Fuentes, 35, and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, 26, were recovered from a submerged pickup truck in about 25 feet of water, WBAL reported. The other workers still have to be located or identified by officialsbut, according to CBS News, they include Maynor Yassir Suazo Sandoval and Miguel Luna.
Initial cleanup of the bridge debris has begun, U.S. Coast Guard Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath said Thursday. For now, workers it will clean up the debris from the collapsethen remove the boat before cleaning up the remaining debris, The New York Times reported.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said the US Army Corps of Engineers would bring in “the largest crane on the East Coast” to help with the cleanup, the New York Times reported.
Moore also didn’t sugarcoat the severity of the cleanup job ahead of time, saying, “Our timeline is going to be long.”
Demolition work could clear a way for ships in as soon as a monthan unnamed expert told CNN, but full debris removal for the 1,200-foot area between the main span of the two piers will likely take much longer.
The collapse also closed the Port of Baltimore indefinitely. The port is a vital endpoint for the shipping and automotive industrydue to its proximity to the railways and its inland location.
While dock workers and truckers continued to move existing cargo to the port’s southeast Baltimore terminals after the accident, most work at the port has been reduced for now.
“If they don’t open the shipping channel, everything stops,” said Scott Cowan, president and CEO of the International Longshoremen’s Association Local 333, which represents dockworkers in Baltimore.
Colin Campbell contributed to this report.
