A kilometre-long bridge, the middle part of which completely collapses in just twenty seconds. These were hallucinatory images that quickly traveled around the world from the American state of Maryland. It all happened around 1:30 a.m. local time when the freighter Dali suddenly veered off course near the Francis Scott Key Bridge. All crew members on the ship were unharmed, but eight workers and at least seven cars ended up in the cold water.
Everything indicates that this is a dramatic accident, and not terrorism. The Baltimore FBI arrived on the scene, but shortly after noon (Belgian time) stated that the collision did not appear to be an intentional act. “This is a tragedy you could never imagine. It looked like something out of an action movie,” Mayor Brandon Scott told international media. US President Joe Biden called it “a terrible accident”.
Rudderless
The Dali had become rudderless shortly before the collision because the ship lost propulsion and the power went out. The crew members had alerted the authorities and dropped anchor, but a collision was inevitable as the vessel was no longer in control. “The ship was moving toward the bridge at a very high rate of speed,” Gov. Wes Moore said at a news conference. “The ship’s crew sent another distress call, but the speed seemed too high to prevent the incident.” However, a much bigger disaster could still be avoided because traffic on the bridge was immediately stopped after the emergency call.
Dali is part of the Danish shipping company Maersk, which owns more than 700 ships. The accident caused the company to suffer serious blows on the stock exchange: its shares briefly fell to six percent in the red in Copenhagen and London. The Dali was already involved in an incident in our country in 2016, in the port of Antwerp. The bow of the ship then collided with a quay and was damaged over several meters.
A total of eight workers were working on the bridge when the boat crashed. Two people were rescued, and the rescue search for the six other missing people was still ongoing on Tuesday evening. “By air, water and land,” said Governor Wes Moore.
In addition, at least seven cars went into the water, although the exact number is not yet clear. Divers are still looking for survivors in the water, but the chances are getting smaller by the minute. “The water temperature is now about 9 degrees,” an expert told CNN. “That may not seem very cold, but it can have fatal consequences from a water temperature of 21 degrees.”
Named after national anthem writer
The Francis Scott Key Brigde was a striking and imposing structure of no less than 2.6 kilometers long. When it opened in 1977, it was the second longest bridge of its kind. All together it cost more than $110 million to build and the bridge was used by about 35,000 people every day.
It is clear that the bridge did not belong to the youngest. But how is it possible that the steel construction immediately collapsed like a house of cards? This probably has to do with the large span, or the distance between two supporting pillars. The largest span on the bridge was no less than 366 meters. For comparison: the longest span on the Vilvoorde viaduct is 163 meters. In addition, newer bridges are more impact-resistant than older bridges. However, according to local authorities, the bridge was still in good technical condition.
The bridge collapse threatens to disrupt the entire US automotive supply chain. “It’s a major port with a lot of transit,” said John Lawler, chief financial officer of American car giant Ford. “We will have to divert parts through other ports on the East Coast or elsewhere in the country.”
Competitor General Motors also says it is working to divert ships carrying parts that would come to the port of Baltimore. The port is closed for the rescue operation.