@mickeyrat thx for the article. It appears people in the business have the same questions I do.
When we went through the locks in seattle we were required to have tugs escort us in and out until we were clear of pretty much anything. Coming into port in other places were the same. Tug escorts. On the 120' catcher and tenders we didn't need one but for a 300' ship and larger, yes. So think of a 900' ship. That thing is 3 football fields long.
I see this changing maritime rules for the better as so this doesn't happen again.
no one standard. up to each port and as article stated , shippers seem to be driving that to keep costs down.
it just makes no sense to have a bridge of that type, classified as a fracture critical(meaning any one part fails leading to complete failure), with zero protection around support piers to not require tug suport.
one argument is if one requires it it will drive traffic to one that doesnt. while I can see that , it lends itself then to federal requirement under coast guard rules or something like that.
watching that first full briefing by ntsb the day after, was both fascinating and alarming , hearing the depth of investigation and some of the stats.
I know how they work, this is my opinion of it. This could also lead to ships having a backup propulsion safety, kind of like how a plane has a backup for everything.
This bridge was made way before the "supertanker" and "megaships" . That being said, seeing the bridge has zero protection, i would have the tugs escort them in/out or put barriers around the bridge but we all know that infrastructure and safety go on the back burner if its not a common occurrence.
If a port is overpopulated because it's "cheaper" to go to, the waiting would hopefully divert the ship to another port?
All good discussions to have. When my buddys that work for the shipping industry come back home I'll ask them some questions since they are part of this every day now. It'll be interesting to hear from them. One is a captain and the other an engineer.
See how the Key Bridge collapse will disrupt the supply of cars, coal and tofu By Rachel Lerman, Hannah Dormido, Jeanne Whalen, Luis Melgar and Laris Karklis March 27, 2024 at 8:15 ET The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on Tuesday cut off access to much of the city’s port — causing a suspension of vessel traffic that will disrupt a key trade lane and threaten to further tangle already-stressed supply chains. The Port of Baltimore was the 17th largest in the nation by total tons in 2021 and an important artery for the movement of autos, construction machinery and coal. It handled 52.3 million tons of foreign cargo worth nearly $81 billion in 2023, according to Maryland data, and creates more than 15,000 jobs. On Tuesday, the Port of Baltimore said that vessel traffic would be suspended in and out of the port until further notice, but trucks would still be processed in its terminals. “Baltimore’s not one of the biggest ports in the United States, but it’s a good moderate-sized port,” said Campbell University maritime historian Sal Mercogliano. It has five public and 12 private terminals to handle port traffic. “It does cars, it does bulk carriers, it does containers, it does passengers,” said Mercogliano. “So this is going to be a big impact.” Baltimore’s the top port in the nation for automobile shipments, having imported and exported more than 750,000 vehicles in 2022, according to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, an industry group.
continues....
screenshots from within the article....
So this article says two things that caught my attention.
"Supply chain stresses" and "key trade lane"
If prices were raised this port seems to be a "key" one so adding extra safety shouldn't matter for costs.
Didn't we already uncover that the supply chain thing was all bullshit? Are they still pushing that narrative or is the reporter lost?
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mickeyrat
up my ass, like Chadwick was up his Posts: 35,999
See how the Key Bridge collapse will disrupt the supply of cars, coal and tofu By Rachel Lerman, Hannah Dormido, Jeanne Whalen, Luis Melgar and Laris Karklis March 27, 2024 at 8:15 ET The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on Tuesday cut off access to much of the city’s port — causing a suspension of vessel traffic that will disrupt a key trade lane and threaten to further tangle already-stressed supply chains. The Port of Baltimore was the 17th largest in the nation by total tons in 2021 and an important artery for the movement of autos, construction machinery and coal. It handled 52.3 million tons of foreign cargo worth nearly $81 billion in 2023, according to Maryland data, and creates more than 15,000 jobs. On Tuesday, the Port of Baltimore said that vessel traffic would be suspended in and out of the port until further notice, but trucks would still be processed in its terminals. “Baltimore’s not one of the biggest ports in the United States, but it’s a good moderate-sized port,” said Campbell University maritime historian Sal Mercogliano. It has five public and 12 private terminals to handle port traffic. “It does cars, it does bulk carriers, it does containers, it does passengers,” said Mercogliano. “So this is going to be a big impact.” Baltimore’s the top port in the nation for automobile shipments, having imported and exported more than 750,000 vehicles in 2022, according to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, an industry group.
continues....
screenshots from within the article....
So this article says two things that caught my attention.
"Supply chain stresses" and "key trade lane"
If prices were raised this port seems to be a "key" one so adding extra safety shouldn't matter for costs.
Didn't we already uncover that the supply chain thing was all bullshit? Are they still pushing that narrative or is the reporter lost?
no , that shit was domestic shenanigans wasnt it(?), its referring to , I believe, the increased traffic into other ports means more truck traffic for that port, delays in loafing/unloading. In that light it is a stressor on the system.
not to mention how Baltimore is situated geographically . Its closer to our interior destinations than either NY or NJ or the southern ports, increased distance to final destination adds to costs, fuel etc....
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mickeyrat
up my ass, like Chadwick was up his Posts: 35,999
The
cargo ship Dali sits in the water, surrounded by four concrete
dolphins, after running into and collapsing the Francis Scott Key Bridge
on March 26, 2024, in Baltimore.
Seconds before the container ship Dali hit the Francis Scott Key
Bridge in Baltimore last week and tore it down, killing six construction
workers, it sailed past a structure designed to prevent that kind of disaster.
Those structures — known as dolphins — are circular concrete
constructions located near a bridge's central supports. Vessels are
meant to crash into them if they veer off track in the shipping channel,
diverting them from collision with the bridge. Four such dolphins
remain intact in the Patapsco River. The one the Dali narrowly missed is located on the right side of the ship, and is dwarfed in size by the vessel which appears to be more than 15 times as long.
Experts said if the Baltimore bridge had been outfitted with more
robust collision-prevention structures, it may not have been struck.
Although Maryland has invested in repairing the Key Bridge, records
reviewed by NPR indicate the dolphins have not been substantially
changed since they were built in the 1970s.
A more robust protection system would have given the Dali a better
chance of hitting the dolphins before the vessel collided with the
bridge, said Roberto Leon, a professor of structural engineering at
Virginia Tech.
"They were very, very small," said Leon. "You needed more, and bigger ones, is really the point."
Tasos Katopodis / Getty Images
/
Getty Images
Four concrete, circular dolphins lie next to the remains of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.
When the Key Bridge was opened in 1977, cargo ships sailing through
the Port of Baltimore were smaller and lighter than modern ones. The
dolphins, which were added shortly after the bridge was finished, have
saved the structure at least once. In 1980, a ship crashed into one dolphin, destroying it but sparing the bridge.
Since then, the sizes of cargo ships have ballooned. They can now carry about 10 times more weight and extend almost two times as long
as when the Key Bridge and its dolphins were designed. The American
Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, the
organization that sets standards for bridge construction safety,
requires newer bridges to build robust collision prevention structures.
Many ports have them.
Satellite imagery of bridges critical to 15 of the busiest U.S. ports
indicates there are few bridges like the Key Bridge that lack immediate
protection for their main support piers. The bridges' central supports
are more often protected by fenders, islands of rocks, concrete beds or
land — the use of remotely located dolphins or no protection at all is
less common.
But the transportation rules don't strictly require that
collision-protection structures built with older bridges be fortified or
replaced. Instead, in 1991, the American Association of State Highway
and Transportation Officials set guidelines for assessing bridges to determine whether or not they should be updated.
Some conducted those analyses. John Hanson, the CEO of the Delaware
River Port Authority, the group that stewards four bridges that cross
the Delaware River between Pennsylvania and New Jersey, said they
completed a vulnerability assessment in 2003 and determined that updates
were not needed for the Betsy Ross Bridge's dolphins in Philadelphia.
Among the bridges of the 15 busiest ports, the Betsy Ross was the most
similar in structure to the Key Bridge, and one of the only ones that
also uses dolphins to protect it.
Even so, satellite imagery shows the dolphins constructed around the
Betsy Ross Bridge appear more robust than the ones surrounding the now
collapsed bridge in Baltimore, said Kim Roddis, a structural engineer
and professor at George Washington University.
"It's definitely more protective," said Roddis. "One of those is really quite large."
NPR asked the Maryland Transportation Authority whether a threat
assessment had been conducted for the Key Bridge and whether the agency
had invested in enhancing the dolphins' structures since they were built
in the 70s. The agency did not respond.
Every year, the Maryland Department of Transportation conducts a
report that evaluates the state's transportation infrastructure and
determines its priorities for investment. Repairs to the bridge were
suggested in 2017, that year's annual report states, and satellite
imagery indicates two transmission towers were constructed between 2019
and 2022, on the side of the bridge closer to Baltimore city. But nautical charts
show the current sizes of the dolphins are similar to their original
1978 dimensions — the four don't appear to have been significantly
enlarged since then.
Leon, the professor of structural engineering at Virginia Tech, said
states face tough choices when it comes to spending on infrastructure.
"They have lacked resources for many years," he said. "And so they
tend to take care of what they think are the more urgent problems."
But putting off this kind of investment can have dangerous consequences, he said.
"Unfortunately, we have taken things for granted for too long. We
haven't done the appropriate maintenance, the appropriate upgrading,"
remarked Leon. "And so this is the result of that."
Chiara Eisner is a reporter for NPR's investigations
team. Eisner came to NPR from The State in South Carolina, where her
investigative reporting on the experiences of former execution workers
received McClatchy's President's Award and her coverage of the
biomedical horseshoe crab industry led to significant restrictions of
the harvest.
Caitlin Thompson
Caitlin Thompson (she/her) is the Roy W. Howard Fellow on NPR's investigations unit.
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brianlux
Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 40,792
Sorry to go off topic a second. but how does something like this...
...go out to sea and not lose half its cargo when this happens:
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
Variously credited to Mark Twain or Edward Abbey.
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mickeyrat
up my ass, like Chadwick was up his Posts: 35,999
from its wiki page...
I served on 2 different aircraft carriers. cv 62 and 64. each displaced 80ish tons fully loaded. felt very little movement with the bering sea being an exception.
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mickeyrat
up my ass, like Chadwick was up his Posts: 35,999
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
I served on 2 different aircraft carriers. cv 62 and 64. each displaced 80ish tons fully loaded. felt very little movement with the bering sea being an exception.
A 1000 foot ship is a luxury liner, lol. Try being on a 100' ship in that crap. I once saw 60' swells in the gulf of Alaska. 20' were common in the Bering. Very cool u got to be up there too.
Brian big ships occasionally get whacked from the odd rogue waves. Those are the widowmakers.
I served on 2 different aircraft carriers. cv 62 and 64. each displaced 80ish tons fully loaded. felt very little movement with the bering sea being an exception.
A 1000 foot ship is a luxury liner, lol. Try being on a 100' ship in that crap. I once saw 60' swells in the gulf of Alaska. 20' were common in the Bering. Very cool u got to be up there too.
Brian big ships occasionally get whacked from the odd rogue waves. Those are the widowmakers.
Speaking of rogue waves, an excellent read. The author even hung out with Kelly Slater and Ed for one of the chapters. Crazy stuff.
I served on 2 different aircraft carriers. cv 62 and 64. each displaced 80ish tons fully loaded. felt very little movement with the bering sea being an exception.
A 1000 foot ship is a luxury liner, lol. Try being on a 100' ship in that crap. I once saw 60' swells in the gulf of Alaska. 20' were common in the Bering. Very cool u got to be up there too.
Brian big ships occasionally get whacked from the odd rogue waves. Those are the widowmakers.
Not fun! I'm still surprised to see those containers stacked up the way they are. I would think even just normal rough seas would cause them to come loss and fall into the ocean. They must have some strong cinching mechanisms.
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
Variously credited to Mark Twain or Edward Abbey.
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mickeyrat
up my ass, like Chadwick was up his Posts: 35,999
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memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
All this talk about cargo ships and ports in Baltimore just makes me think of season 2 of The Wire. Ol' Frank Sobotka's crew would be out of work. Damn cans.
It's a hopeless situation...
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brianlux
Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 40,792
Fourth temporary channel to open allowing stranded ships to leave Port of Baltimore
By
Christian Olaniran,
Alex Glaze
Updated on: April 25, 2024 / 5:25 AM EDT
/ CBS Baltimore
BALTIMORE
-- A fourth temporary channel is scheduled to open at the Port of
Baltimore on Thursday, according to the U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the
Port.
That fourth channel will only be open for four days, but at
35 feet deep and 300 feet wide it will allow several ships that are
stuck in the Port of Baltimore to get out.
Many ships have been stranded at the port since the March 26 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.
"Around
that 35-foot draft is where you're really starting to get some of the
inventory that's coming onboard that had really been some of the
hallmarks of The Port of Baltimore," Governor Moore explained in a press
conference Tuesday.
Captain
David O'Connell - with the U.S. Coast Guard - says there are currently
seven ships ready to get out of the port. Five will be able to get out,
including a loaded car-carrier.
Dr. Christina DePasquale, a
professor at Johns Hopkins's Carey Business School who focuses on
economics, says having a car transporter being able to use the temporary
35-foot shipping channel is huge.
"That's one of the port's
claims to fame, right? We have the most car imports in the U.S. coming
through that port," DePasquale said.
Commercial ships will also be using the fourth temporary channel to come into the port.
"I know we have a container barge, which is scheduled to come in. We
have another small bulker coming in, and another aluminum ship would be
scheduled to come in during that time frame as well," O'Connell said.
The
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expects to reopen the main shipping
channel - which is 700 feet wide and 50 feet deep - by the end of May.
"There's
no way around it that in terms of the impact on the local and the state
economy, we want to resume 100 percent of pre-collapse activity because
it just contributes to so many jobs in the economy, contributes to so
much income that flows through both the city, the county and the rest of
the state," DePasquale said.
A third temporary channel has opened
at the Port of Baltimore, according to a statement from the Baltimore
Captain of the Port (COTP).
Unlike previous channels, this has a depth of 20 feet, which could
allow larger commercial vessels to transport goods in and out of the
port.
"As previously shared, the first two temporary alternate
channels opened by the COTP are not deep enough to accommodate the
larger oceangoing container vessels that Maersk and other carriers use
to call upon Baltimore and other USEC ports," the COTP said.
With the main channel closed, businesses have had to use alternative methods to transport their products.
With
nearly half of the 700-foot main shipping channel cleared, salvage
teams are now focused on the portion of the span on top of the Dali.
Christian Olaniran is a
Digital Producer for CBS News Baltimore, where he writes stories on
diverse topics including politics, arts, culture, sports and more. He
also creates engaging social media content to complement news coverage.
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mickeyrat
up my ass, like Chadwick was up his Posts: 35,999
Collapsed Baltimore bridge span comes down with a boom after crews set off chain of explosives
By LEA SKENE
36 mins ago
BALTIMORE (AP) — Crews set off a chain of carefully placed explosives Monday to break down the largest remaining span of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, and with a boom and a splash, the mangled steel trusses came crashing down into the river below.
The explosives flashed orange and let off plumes of black smoke upon detonation. The longest trusses toppled away from the grounded Dali container ship and slid off its bow, sending a wall of water splashing back toward the ship.
It marked a major step in freeing the Dali, which has been stuck among the wreckage since it lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s support columns shortly after leaving Baltimore on March 26.
The collapse killed six construction workers and halted most maritime traffic through Baltimore’s busy port. The controlled demolition will allow the Dali to be refloated and restore traffic through the port, which will provide relief for thousands of longshoremen, truckers and small business owners who have seen their jobs impacted by the closure.
Officials said the detonation went as planned. They said the next step in the dynamic cleanup process is to assess the few remaining trusses on the Dali’s bow and make sure none of the underwater wreckage is preventing the ship from being refloated and moved.
“It’s a lot like peeling back an onion,” said Lt. Gen. Scott Spellmon of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Officials expect to refloat the ship within the next few days. Then three or four tugboats will guide it to a nearby terminal at the port. It will likely remain there for a several weeks and undergo temporary repairs before being moved to a shipyard for more substantial repairs.
“This was a very big milestone for our progression forward,” Col. Estee Pinchasin, Baltimore District Commander for the Army Corps of Engineers, said in the immediate aftermath of the demolition. She said crews don’t anticipate having to use any more explosives.
The Dali’s crew remained on board the ship during the detonation, and no injuries or problems were reported, said Capt. David O’Connell, commander of the Port of Baltimore.
The crew members haven’t been allowed to leave the grounded vessel since the disaster. Officials said they’ve been busy maintaining the ship and assisting investigators. Of the crew members, 20 are from India and one is Sri Lankan.
Engineers spent weeks preparing to use explosives to break down the span, which was an estimated 500 feet (152 meters) long and weighs up to 600 tons (544 metric tons). The demolition was postponed Sunday because of thunderstorms.
“This is a best practice,” Gov. Wes Moore said at a news conference Monday, noting that there have been no injuries during the cleanup to date. “Safety in this operation is our top priority.”
Fire teams were stationed in the area during the explosion in case of any problematic flying sparks, officials said.
In a videographic released this week, authorities said engineers were using precision cuts to control how the trusses break down. They said the method allows for “surgical precision” and is one of the safest and most efficient ways to remove steel under a high level of tension. Hydraulic grabbers will now lift the broken sections of steel onto barges.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the FBI are conducting investigations into the bridge collapse. Officials have said the safety board investigation will focus on the ship’s electrical system.
Danish shipping giant Maersk had chartered the Dali for a planned trip from Baltimore to Sri Lanka, but the ship didn’t get far. Its crew sent a mayday call saying they had lost power and had no control of the steering system. Minutes later, the ship rammed into the bridge.
State and federal officials have commended the salvage crews and other members of the cleanup operation who helped recover the remains of the six construction workers. The last body was recovered from the underwater wreckage last week. All of the victims were Latino immigrants who came to the U.S. for job opportunities. They were filling potholes on an overnight shift when the bridge was destroyed.
Officials said the operation remains on track to reopen the port’s 50-foot (15-meter) deep draft channel by the end of May. Until then, crews have established a temporary channel that’s slightly shallower. Officials said 365 commercial vessels have passed through the port in recent weeks. The port normally processes more cars and farm equipment than any other in the country.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Baltimore native whose father and brother served as mayor decades ago, compared the Key Bridge disaster to the overnight bombardment of Baltimore’s Fort McHenry, which long ago inspired Francis Scott Key to write “The Star-Spangled Banner” during the War of 1812. She said both are a testament to Maryland’s resilience.
Pelosi, a Democrat who represents California’s 11th district, attended Monday’s news conference with two of her relatives. She praised the collective response to the tragedy as various government agencies have come together, working quickly without sacrificing safety.
“Proof through the night that our flag was still there,” she said. “That’s Baltimore strong.”
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mickeyrat
up my ass, like Chadwick was up his Posts: 35,999
Contact of Cargo Vessel Dali with Francis Scott Key Bridge and Subsequent Bridge Collapse
What Happened
This information is preliminary and subject to change. Release Date: 14 May 2024
On
March 26, 2024, about 0129 eastern daylight time, the 947-foot-long
Singapore-flagged cargo vessel (containership) Dali was transiting out
of Baltimore Harbor in Baltimore, Maryland, when it experienced a
loss of electrical power and propulsion and struck the southern
pier supporting the central truss spans of the Francis Scott Key Bridge
(Key Bridge). A portion of the bridge subsequently collapsed into the
river, and portions of the deck and the truss spans collapsed onto the
vessel’s forward deck (see figure 1). A seven-person road maintenance
crew employed by Brawner Builders—which was contracted by the Maryland
Transportation Authority (MDTA)—and one inspector employed by Eborn
Enterprises, Inc., a subconsultant to the MDTA, were on the bridge when
the vessel struck it. The inspector escaped unharmed, and one of the
construction crewmembers survived with serious injuries. The bodies of
the six fatally injured construction crewmembers have been recovered.
One of the 23 persons aboard the Dali was injured.
The US Coast Guard classified this accident as a major marine casualty. NTSB is leading the safety investigation.
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Comments
This bridge was made way before the "supertanker" and "megaships" . That being said, seeing the bridge has zero protection, i would have the tugs escort them in/out or put barriers around the bridge but we all know that infrastructure and safety go on the back burner if its not a common occurrence.
If a port is overpopulated because it's "cheaper" to go to, the waiting would hopefully divert the ship to another port?
All good discussions to have. When my buddys that work for the shipping industry come back home I'll ask them some questions since they are part of this every day now. It'll be interesting to hear from them. One is a captain and the other an engineer.
"Supply chain stresses" and "key trade lane"
If prices were raised this port seems to be a "key" one so adding extra safety shouldn't matter for costs.
Didn't we already uncover that the supply chain thing was all bullshit? Are they still pushing that narrative or is the reporter lost?
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you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Seconds before the container ship Dali hit the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore last week and tore it down, killing six construction workers, it sailed past a structure designed to prevent that kind of disaster.
Those structures — known as dolphins — are circular concrete constructions located near a bridge's central supports. Vessels are meant to crash into them if they veer off track in the shipping channel, diverting them from collision with the bridge. Four such dolphins remain intact in the Patapsco River. The one the Dali narrowly missed is located on the right side of the ship, and is dwarfed in size by the vessel which appears to be more than 15 times as long.
Experts said if the Baltimore bridge had been outfitted with more robust collision-prevention structures, it may not have been struck. Although Maryland has invested in repairing the Key Bridge, records reviewed by NPR indicate the dolphins have not been substantially changed since they were built in the 1970s.
A more robust protection system would have given the Dali a better chance of hitting the dolphins before the vessel collided with the bridge, said Roberto Leon, a professor of structural engineering at Virginia Tech.
"They were very, very small," said Leon. "You needed more, and bigger ones, is really the point."
When the Key Bridge was opened in 1977, cargo ships sailing through the Port of Baltimore were smaller and lighter than modern ones. The dolphins, which were added shortly after the bridge was finished, have saved the structure at least once. In 1980, a ship crashed into one dolphin, destroying it but sparing the bridge.
Since then, the sizes of cargo ships have ballooned. They can now carry about 10 times more weight and extend almost two times as long as when the Key Bridge and its dolphins were designed. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, the organization that sets standards for bridge construction safety, requires newer bridges to build robust collision prevention structures. Many ports have them.
Satellite imagery of bridges critical to 15 of the busiest U.S. ports indicates there are few bridges like the Key Bridge that lack immediate protection for their main support piers. The bridges' central supports are more often protected by fenders, islands of rocks, concrete beds or land — the use of remotely located dolphins or no protection at all is less common.
But the transportation rules don't strictly require that collision-protection structures built with older bridges be fortified or replaced. Instead, in 1991, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials set guidelines for assessing bridges to determine whether or not they should be updated.
Some conducted those analyses. John Hanson, the CEO of the Delaware River Port Authority, the group that stewards four bridges that cross the Delaware River between Pennsylvania and New Jersey, said they completed a vulnerability assessment in 2003 and determined that updates were not needed for the Betsy Ross Bridge's dolphins in Philadelphia. Among the bridges of the 15 busiest ports, the Betsy Ross was the most similar in structure to the Key Bridge, and one of the only ones that also uses dolphins to protect it.
Even so, satellite imagery shows the dolphins constructed around the Betsy Ross Bridge appear more robust than the ones surrounding the now collapsed bridge in Baltimore, said Kim Roddis, a structural engineer and professor at George Washington University.
"It's definitely more protective," said Roddis. "One of those is really quite large."
NPR asked the Maryland Transportation Authority whether a threat assessment had been conducted for the Key Bridge and whether the agency had invested in enhancing the dolphins' structures since they were built in the 70s. The agency did not respond.
Every year, the Maryland Department of Transportation conducts a report that evaluates the state's transportation infrastructure and determines its priorities for investment. Repairs to the bridge were suggested in 2017, that year's annual report states, and satellite imagery indicates two transmission towers were constructed between 2019 and 2022, on the side of the bridge closer to Baltimore city. But nautical charts show the current sizes of the dolphins are similar to their original 1978 dimensions — the four don't appear to have been significantly enlarged since then.
Leon, the professor of structural engineering at Virginia Tech, said states face tough choices when it comes to spending on infrastructure.
"They have lacked resources for many years," he said. "And so they tend to take care of what they think are the more urgent problems."
But putting off this kind of investment can have dangerous consequences, he said.
"Unfortunately, we have taken things for granted for too long. We haven't done the appropriate maintenance, the appropriate upgrading," remarked Leon. "And so this is the result of that."
Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
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Brian big ships occasionally get whacked from the odd rogue waves. Those are the widowmakers.
https://www.amazon.ca/Wave-Pursuit-Rogues-Freaks-Giants/dp/0385666683/ref=asc_df_0385666683/?tag=googlemobshop-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=292981860857&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=17940642256364067577&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001599&hvtargid=pla-451357934781&psc=1&mcid=1548fd74e8813db2a2f2f4ede7a8b817
Libtardaplorable©. And proud of it.
Brilliantati©
Not fun! I'm still surprised to see those containers stacked up the way they are. I would think even just normal rough seas would cause them to come loss and fall into the ocean. They must have some strong cinching mechanisms.
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Watch CBS News
Fourth temporary channel to open allowing stranded ships to leave Port of Baltimore
By Christian Olaniran, Alex Glaze
Updated on: April 25, 2024 / 5:25 AM EDT / CBS Baltimore
BALTIMORE -- A fourth temporary channel is scheduled to open at the Port of Baltimore on Thursday, according to the U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the Port.
That fourth channel will only be open for four days, but at 35 feet deep and 300 feet wide it will allow several ships that are stuck in the Port of Baltimore to get out.
Many ships have been stranded at the port since the March 26 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.
"Around that 35-foot draft is where you're really starting to get some of the inventory that's coming onboard that had really been some of the hallmarks of The Port of Baltimore," Governor Moore explained in a press conference Tuesday.
Captain David O'Connell - with the U.S. Coast Guard - says there are currently seven ships ready to get out of the port. Five will be able to get out, including a loaded car-carrier.
Dr. Christina DePasquale, a professor at Johns Hopkins's Carey Business School who focuses on economics, says having a car transporter being able to use the temporary 35-foot shipping channel is huge.
"That's one of the port's claims to fame, right? We have the most car imports in the U.S. coming through that port," DePasquale said.
Commercial ships will also be using the fourth temporary channel to come into the port.
"I know we have a container barge, which is scheduled to come in. We have another small bulker coming in, and another aluminum ship would be scheduled to come in during that time frame as well," O'Connell said.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expects to reopen the main shipping channel - which is 700 feet wide and 50 feet deep - by the end of May.
"There's no way around it that in terms of the impact on the local and the state economy, we want to resume 100 percent of pre-collapse activity because it just contributes to so many jobs in the economy, contributes to so much income that flows through both the city, the county and the rest of the state," DePasquale said.
A third temporary channel has opened at the Port of Baltimore, according to a statement from the Baltimore Captain of the Port (COTP).
It's a sign of progress, as the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge is already expected to trigger an increase in the cost of goods.
Unlike previous channels, this has a depth of 20 feet, which could allow larger commercial vessels to transport goods in and out of the port.
"As previously shared, the first two temporary alternate channels opened by the COTP are not deep enough to accommodate the larger oceangoing container vessels that Maersk and other carriers use to call upon Baltimore and other USEC ports," the COTP said.
With the main channel closed, businesses have had to use alternative methods to transport their products.
With nearly half of the 700-foot main shipping channel cleared, salvage teams are now focused on the portion of the span on top of the Dali.
More from CBS News
Christian Olaniran is a Digital Producer for CBS News Baltimore, where he writes stories on diverse topics including politics, arts, culture, sports and more. He also creates engaging social media content to complement news coverage.
First published on April 24, 2024 / 3:17 PM EDT
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Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
BALTIMORE (AP) — Crews set off a chain of carefully placed explosives Monday to break down the largest remaining span of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, and with a boom and a splash, the mangled steel trusses came crashing down into the river below.
The explosives flashed orange and let off plumes of black smoke upon detonation. The longest trusses toppled away from the grounded Dali container ship and slid off its bow, sending a wall of water splashing back toward the ship.
It marked a major step in freeing the Dali, which has been stuck among the wreckage since it lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s support columns shortly after leaving Baltimore on March 26.
The collapse killed six construction workers and halted most maritime traffic through Baltimore’s busy port. The controlled demolition will allow the Dali to be refloated and restore traffic through the port, which will provide relief for thousands of longshoremen, truckers and small business owners who have seen their jobs impacted by the closure.
Officials said the detonation went as planned. They said the next step in the dynamic cleanup process is to assess the few remaining trusses on the Dali’s bow and make sure none of the underwater wreckage is preventing the ship from being refloated and moved.
“It’s a lot like peeling back an onion,” said Lt. Gen. Scott Spellmon of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Officials expect to refloat the ship within the next few days. Then three or four tugboats will guide it to a nearby terminal at the port. It will likely remain there for a several weeks and undergo temporary repairs before being moved to a shipyard for more substantial repairs.
“This was a very big milestone for our progression forward,” Col. Estee Pinchasin, Baltimore District Commander for the Army Corps of Engineers, said in the immediate aftermath of the demolition. She said crews don’t anticipate having to use any more explosives.
The Dali’s crew remained on board the ship during the detonation, and no injuries or problems were reported, said Capt. David O’Connell, commander of the Port of Baltimore.
The crew members haven’t been allowed to leave the grounded vessel since the disaster. Officials said they’ve been busy maintaining the ship and assisting investigators. Of the crew members, 20 are from India and one is Sri Lankan.
Engineers spent weeks preparing to use explosives to break down the span, which was an estimated 500 feet (152 meters) long and weighs up to 600 tons (544 metric tons). The demolition was postponed Sunday because of thunderstorms.
“This is a best practice,” Gov. Wes Moore said at a news conference Monday, noting that there have been no injuries during the cleanup to date. “Safety in this operation is our top priority.”
Fire teams were stationed in the area during the explosion in case of any problematic flying sparks, officials said.
In a videographic released this week, authorities said engineers were using precision cuts to control how the trusses break down. They said the method allows for “surgical precision” and is one of the safest and most efficient ways to remove steel under a high level of tension. Hydraulic grabbers will now lift the broken sections of steel onto barges.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the FBI are conducting investigations into the bridge collapse. Officials have said the safety board investigation will focus on the ship’s electrical system.
Danish shipping giant Maersk had chartered the Dali for a planned trip from Baltimore to Sri Lanka, but the ship didn’t get far. Its crew sent a mayday call saying they had lost power and had no control of the steering system. Minutes later, the ship rammed into the bridge.
State and federal officials have commended the salvage crews and other members of the cleanup operation who helped recover the remains of the six construction workers. The last body was recovered from the underwater wreckage last week. All of the victims were Latino immigrants who came to the U.S. for job opportunities. They were filling potholes on an overnight shift when the bridge was destroyed.
Officials said the operation remains on track to reopen the port’s 50-foot (15-meter) deep draft channel by the end of May. Until then, crews have established a temporary channel that’s slightly shallower. Officials said 365 commercial vessels have passed through the port in recent weeks. The port normally processes more cars and farm equipment than any other in the country.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Baltimore native whose father and brother served as mayor decades ago, compared the Key Bridge disaster to the overnight bombardment of Baltimore’s Fort McHenry, which long ago inspired Francis Scott Key to write “The Star-Spangled Banner” during the War of 1812. She said both are a testament to Maryland’s resilience.
Pelosi, a Democrat who represents California’s 11th district, attended Monday’s news conference with two of her relatives. She praised the collective response to the tragedy as various government agencies have come together, working quickly without sacrificing safety.
“Proof through the night that our flag was still there,” she said. “That’s Baltimore strong.”
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Contact of Cargo Vessel Dali with Francis Scott Key Bridge and Subsequent Bridge Collapse
What Happened
This information is preliminary and subject to change. Release Date: 14 May 2024
On March 26, 2024, about 0129 eastern daylight time, the 947-foot-long Singapore-flagged cargo vessel (containership) Dali was transiting out of Baltimore Harbor in Baltimore, Maryland, when it experienced a loss of electrical power and propulsion and struck the southern pier supporting the central truss spans of the Francis Scott Key Bridge (Key Bridge). A portion of the bridge subsequently collapsed into the river, and portions of the deck and the truss spans collapsed onto the vessel’s forward deck (see figure 1). A seven-person road maintenance crew employed by Brawner Builders—which was contracted by the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA)—and one inspector employed by Eborn Enterprises, Inc., a subconsultant to the MDTA, were on the bridge when the vessel struck it. The inspector escaped unharmed, and one of the construction crewmembers survived with serious injuries. The bodies of the six fatally injured construction crewmembers have been recovered. One of the 23 persons aboard the Dali was injured.
The US Coast Guard classified this accident as a major marine casualty. NTSB is leading the safety investigation.
Read the Preliminary Report.
View on scene photos from NTSB Flickr.
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14