Francis Scott Key Bridge Crashed By Ship...

[Mr. Jelly]

There were no tugboats because there are no regulations for them at that time of night. This is another example about the +/- of regulations.

[imwjl]

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

If you look carefully you can see "dolphins," round structures built upon pilings that stand between the piers and the traffic.



Unfortunately in this case the ship was out of the channel and the dolphins couldn't protect the piers. There has been a move in the last few decades to build artificial islands around bridge piers that can absorb a ship strike. Does anyone remember the Big Bayou Canot rail accident caused by a barge strike? More, HERE. What are the bets the efforts for pier protection will accelerate?

Bob

I had awareness from being near all the Mississippi traffic and formerly spending time along the Columbia where it was really obvious there were the features such as the riprap (islands), fenders of pilings or more sophisticated ones. The frequencies of barge accidents and problems show it's not perfect but sure helps.

Old bridge replacements and the tragic with more life lost I35 bridge collapse set off a lot of debate on costs and speed to get projects done. At least for Mississippi the currents also create a maintenance issue where there are islands and riprap.

It seems like a lot of people don't realize how much traffic we have on water and how we depend on it so my inner cheapskate is mostly fine when things are fixed better, and I dislike when problems or fixes for risk get kicked down the road.

I remember the accident you linked and I35 collapse so hope the whole world doesn't have too short a memory for this, and learning is acted on. I think the Big Bayou accident is in part why you see all the stuff constructed when you travel along the Mississippi. IIRC that was early 1990s. The I35 was part a design and part a maintenance matter. A tangent for a different Mississippi bridge currently being replaced is the nation still has too many bridges with more use and load than was intended.

[Talk2Me]

Originally Posted by Cypress Knee

According to The Baltimore Sun, police cars were in the area and were able to block access to the bridge just before impact.

There were seven or eight Hispanic construction workers on the bridge. Evidently one of them walked away without injury. A second was treated and released. The other six are missing and presumed dead.

Sonar has detected vehicle signatures in water about fifty feet deep. Dive teams are attempting to locate the vehicles and any other victims. It has been reported that they have found a truck in two pieces and are looking for other vehicles.

This is the second time in recent memory that the Hispanic construction workers in Baltimore have had tragic experiences. Almost one year ago to the day a speeding car barreled over the jersey wall barrier on I 695 and killed six workers.

Not trying to veer off into the political (and mods can delete if it is while simultaneously removing the post I'm responding to but) I really don't know what the racial makeup of any of these victims has to do with anything. These were men (does that even matter?), human beings who apparently met their fate in a horrific fashion. Who cares where they were from, what their skin or hair color was or anything else?! A tragedy. Period.

[fazool]

don't go off course

[Cypress Knee]

Originally Posted by Talk2Me

Not trying to veer off into the political (and mods can delete if it is while simultaneously removing the post I'm responding to but) I really don't know what the racial makeup of any of these victims has to do with anything. These were men (does that even matter?), human beings who apparently met their fate in a horrific fashion. Who cares where they were from, what their skin or hair color was or anything else?! A tragedy. Period.

Baltimore's local nickname is "Smalltimore". There are many diverse communities inside the larger Standard Metropolitan Area. And everyone seems to know everyone else in their community. That is why this hits so hard - everyone in that community knew or knew of those workers and their families.

These are not six losses scattered across a couple of million people in an SMA. It is six deaths in a very small portion of the overall community, and it hits harder because of that.

[Talk2Me]

Originally Posted by Cypress Knee

Baltimore's local nickname is "Smalltimore". There are many diverse communities inside the larger Standard Metropolitan Area. And everyone seems to know everyone else in their community. That is why this hits so hard - everyone in that community knew or knew of those workers and their families.

These are not six losses scattered across a couple of million people in an SMA. It is six deaths in a very small portion of the overall community, and it hits harder because of that.

Maybe so but their racial makeup is completely irrelevant to the story. I'm sure they belong to many different communities within the SMA. Like with most humans.

[MrDB]

6 people apparently dead, so terrible. Would have been worse but the ship sent out a mayday call and Baltimore police rushed over and blocked off the bridge. Great teamwork there. Gonna be several weeks of work freeing the ship and removing the wreckage before the harbor can be reopened. Several years before the bridge will be rebuilt.

[Tunesalot]

Very sad indeed. Could see some cars crossing over just before impact, but with that long mile+ span it is likely there wasn’t enough time for the workers to evacuate. Heard the road crew lived in the community directly at one end of the bridge and my heart goes out to those grieving loved ones.

[Gromitspapa]

Maersk got fined last year for silencing a whistleblower and previously the Dali had propulsion problems:

https://www.yahoo.com/news/cargo-gia...l?guccounter=1


A report on the Dali having severe electrical issues at port right before it crashed:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...rker-says.html

[frankmcr]

Not the first time a container ship has crashed into that bridge. August 1980 a ship lost power and rammed into a protective concrete piling. Bridge held, not much damage suffered.

But . . . the ship involved back then was a standard size container vessel of the time. The ship that crashed into the bridge the other day was today's standard size - three times bigger than the ship in the 1980 incident. The bridge wasn't designed to withstand that kind of impact.


https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/27/us/ke...nvs/index.html

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

I was wondering, too, why tugboats weren't shepherding a ship like this out. This is a monumental disaster. The cost to the public will be huge. And the likely loss of life is very, very sad.

- Glenn

The last report I saw said the tugs had been used but had released the ship and were already well on their way back to their dock. When the ship lost power and steering it radioed for the tugs to return but they could not make it back in Time
But seems odd to me that with a ship that size and weight 95 thousand tons, that the tugs would not stay attached until the ship well past any bridges and in open water ??

[Birdbrain]

That bridge has stood there for almost 50 years with ships sailing under it. There was one hit from a smaller cargo ship, which might have been a hint of the danger, but that danger exists in many port regions.

If there's a systemic/economic issue this illustrates, it's a failure of international regulations to control the imperatives of globalism. Ships are getting bigger and better, largely to shave payroll expenses by eliminating (low-paid) personnel. We the public are expected to continually pay to armor and replace our bridges and ports to accommodate this? There has to be an end to that progression, and I hope this is it.

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Mr. Jelly

There were no tugboats because there are no regulations for them at that time of night. This is another example about the +/- of regulations.

Humm according to this USA today article that is incorrect >This article say that tugs were used , but left prior to the ship loosing power

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...r/73123627007/

Excerpt :
On Tuesday, a pair of tugboats operated by McAllister Towing and Transportation did just that, helping the Dali unmoor itself from the main terminal at the Port of Baltimore and orient the ship toward the open waters.

But they broke away before the massive ship navigated under the bridge, as is common practice. Minutes later, the Dali appeared to lose power and propulsion, sending the craft adrift and directly into one of the bridge’s support columns. The steel-truss bridge immediately collapsed into the frigid Patapsco River.

[Murphy Slaw]

I wonder if they'll replace everything, or just the damaged stuff and carry on?

And, when will be the opening?

[Mr. Jelly]

Originally Posted by KevWind

Humm according to this USA today article that is incorrect >This article say that tugs were used l but left prior to the ship loosing power

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...r/73123627007/

Excerpt :

But they broke away before the massive ship navigated under the bridge, as is common practice.

They were within regulations and that is my point.