The $60 million budget released the US government in emergency aid for the damaged bridge in Baltimore, although the total cost of the consequences may amount to 4 billion. At his 28 years of service, during which he patrols the Francis Scott Bridge Key almost every night, he’s never lived in his neighborhood so quiet. “I hear seagulls, some helicopters in the background. Nothing else, it’s completely surreal,” says Steve, a Baltimore Port Police officer. The approach of the damaged bridge in the port of Baltimore has been largely blocked and the usual noise of container cars and vessels has been silenced. This is due to the fact that the four lane highway ends after a few hundred meters in the gap, after a cargo ship dissolved the bridge early Tuesday morning (26.03.24). Steel skeletons protrude from the water like a disaster film setting, with the cargo ship “Dali” stuck in the middle of all of them as the sun sets. The videos from the collision of the ship in Baltimore are around the world and the residents and authorities of the area are preparing for years of reconstruction work. The “destruction in the critical infrastructure centre”, as the US Coast Guard accident describes, now poses challenges for dozens of ministries, federal and state authorities and researchers. “We are faced with an unthinkable project,” said Wes Moore, governor of the State of Maryland, Thursday evening (local time) at the emergency services crisis center, which was set up in a low building overlooking the disaster site. “The ship is about the size of the Eiffel Tower. And on top of it is a steel bridge. Imagine it. Until recently I couldn’t imagine it,” says the governor. “What we do here is of national and global importance,” says the German newspaper Handelsblatt. The special crane “Chesapeake 1000”, nicknamed “Chessy” by the American authorities, has been in the spot since midnight. The 1,000-ton military crane dates back to the Cold War era and was originally built to rescue nuclear submarines. “Chessy” must now do the impossible: “We have to cut the sections of the bridge, then rescue them and somehow take the cargo ship out of the water”, Moore continues. The divers “travel in the water, risking their lives” to search for the bodies of the four missing workers of the bridge. 60m euros in emergency aid are on their way. A total of six men from a construction crew repairing pits on the asphalt died. According to media reports, workers, all from Latin America, had just taken a night’s breath when the cargo ship rammed the bridge’s support pillar. Three days after the crash, the investigation into the tragedy is just beginning. “At this point, there are many more unknown than known,” says the responsible Coast Guard admiral, Shannon Gillirez, putting his hand on the governor’s shoulder. Sleep is available to all rescuers only on an hourly basis in recent days. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National Transportation Safety Board carry out parallel investigations into various theories, e.g. if contaminated fuel, other technical error or human error led to the accident. The issue of responsibility and who must pay the multiple damages is likely to employ the courts and relatives of the affected for years. The U.S. government has released $60 million in emergency aid for the damaged bridge in Baltimore, but experts say the cost may amount to $4 billion. This does not include possible claims for compensation from victims’ families. “It is clear that the investigation will be very complicated because many countries and bodies are involved,” supply chain expert Tinglong Dai told Handelsblatt. “The accident is a serious blow to the insurance industry, which will certainly be felt by the cargo industry”. What makes the destruction of Baltimore so complicated is the fact that it is not just a bridge that needs to be rebuilt. The first priority, apart from recovering missing persons, is to clean up the bay. For every day the port remains closed, the area loses US$15 million, thousands of port workers are currently on leave and an important route for workers and trucks carrying consumer goods is blocked. Meanwhile, fundraising campaigns are organized for the families of dead bridge workers. Defence teams warn against the dangerous conditions under which road workers work – often immigrants –. Local newspaper reported this week that one of the workers injured in the bridge collapse was initially rejected at the hospital for not having adequate health insurance. Baltimore is also a screen of criticism and hope-on the one hand, overwhelmed by crises and, on the other hand, is part of a growing region. Baltimore is part of the “northeast corridor” of the American coast, from which U.S. President Joe Biden traveled by train every week as a senator to reach Congress in Washington. “Life can end so quickly” Compared to Philadelphia, New York and Boston, Baltimore is often considered a troubled child due to high rates of crime, social division, police violence and racism. At the same time, Baltimore has become necessary as a logistics centre for international companies and there is constant hunger for workers and expansion. In recent years, giant warehouses and new luxury apartments have been built around the port. Two days before the conflict, Mayor Brandon Scott, at 36 years one of the youngest mayors in the US, still advertised the city’s reinvention. Then “Dali”, a cargo ship from Singapore filled with soaps, aromas and batteries, a symbol of consumption and prosperity, caused one of the worst naval disasters in history. Research is also influenced by the constant fight against misinformation, the internet is full of theories about a foreign controlled attack or even a campaign maneuver by Joe Biden – speculations rage. It is no accident that the governor has issued two daily updates on the current situation and Transport Minister Pete Batting has recommended a “team of work on the supply chain”: the aim is to restore confidence. Normal life continues in Baltimore, of course, but many people concern the collapse of the bridge. At Jimmy’s Seafood fast food, fans watch an important baseball game Thursday night, with Baltimore Orioles facing L.A. Angels. Robert, who grew up near the bridge, has not yet managed to see the debris in person. “I pass this bridge three or four times a day, I can’t believe it,” he says. He holds a bottle of beer in one hand and a cigar in the other. He lets the cigar head towards the beer bottle, “boom!” says Robert. “It can end so quickly”, he murmurs and looks again towards the flat-screen TV. Stephen, the harbor police officer, hopes that the world’s attention will not be reduced too quickly. Three of his colleagues were there the night of the accident and closed the bridge from traffic, thus saving lives. “They stood right next to the bridge and looked death in the eyes. We must not forget this, even if the many television cameras have long gone away.”
Baltimore: Even at 4 billion euros the cost of the effects of Dali’s wreck – “Unimaginable” the reconstruction project
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