Experts say the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge is a “catastrophe” that could disrupt $80 billion in cargo moving to and from one of the nation’s busiest ports. .
The Port of Baltimore is one of the nation’s leading import and export hubs for automobiles, light trucks, sugar and gypsum, and in 2023, a record 52.3 million tons of foreign cargo was transported.
But the overnight collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge has left the busy port closed to ships, with authorities offering no clear timeline for when the port will close. Lars Jensen, CEO of shipping specialist Vespucci Maritime, warned of the economic impact. We will resume.
“This is a disaster and will create significant problems for U.S. importers and exporters on the U.S. East Coast.” Jensen wrote on LinkedIn:.
“Due to the bridge collapse, there will be no access to the container terminal in Baltimore or other port terminals for some time.
“Furthermore, this means that cargo already gated into the Baltimore terminal will have to wait an unknown period of time until sea lanes reopen or be gated out and move to another port,” he said. added.
Maryland Transportation Secretary Paul Wiedefeld told reporters Tuesday that shipping traffic in and out of the Port of Baltimore is suspended until further notice, but the port remains open to truck traffic. He said there is.
Gov. Wes Moore said Key Bridge reconstruction would likely be a “long-term construction,” but did not provide specifics.
“It’s going to be a build that requires every facet and every facet of our society. We can say we’re going to get this done,” Moore said.
President Biden provided evidence of how important this port is to the economy. He vowed to “move heaven and earth” to help repair the bridge and the people employed at the Port of Baltimore.
“We’re going to do everything we can to protect these jobs and help these workers,” the president said.
The port area also supports the cruise industry, with Carnival, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean carrying about 440,000 passengers on trips across the Patapsco River last year. According to the Baltimore Banner.
Royal Caribbean said in a statement that it is closely monitoring the situation in Baltimore and is “working on alternatives for current and future sailings on Vision of the Seas.”
More than 15,300 jobs are also created at the Port of Baltimore, with an additional 140,000 jobs associated with port activities.
Scott Cowan, president of the International Longshoremen’s Association Local 333 at the Port of Baltimore, warned that the bridge collapse would likely have a “devastating” impact on the people employed there.
“Until the shipping lanes are opened, there will be no shipping traffic, no ships coming, and no jobs for people.” Cowan told the Baltimore Sun..
