Buoys are being installed in temporary waterways to allow a small amount of priority traffic to enter and exit Baltimore, the first step in a “phased” effort to reopen the port, Maryland’s governor said. said.
The deep channel has been dredged and maintained at a depth of 45 feet to accommodate the largest vessels, including the Evergreen A-class container carrier, which has more than twice the carrying capacity of the MV Dali, which destroyed the bridge last week. There is. Although it still remains blocked for many weeks, a small secondary channel has been opened. The interim, undredged route passes under the first existing span of the destroyed bridge over the Patapsco River, with limited clearance and only 11 feet deep.
The tugboat Crystal Coast was the first to transit the new temporary alternate waterway near the Dali container ship after colliding with the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which collapsed into the Patapsco River in Baltimore, Maryland, USA, on Monday, April. A fuel barge is being pushed by the ship tug Crystal Coast. Ports along the U.S. East Coast are changing operations to accept cargo diverted from the Port of Baltimore, and salvage experts are facing the daunting task of removing debris from the destroyed Francis Scott Key Bridge. Work has begun.Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Although the buoy marks the new channel for safety, the narrow and shallow space means very limited traffic can use it, primarily passing through the main part of the bridge to get to their destination. may be limited to barges or tugs used to reach. The port will open again. It is certainly not large enough for a container ship to pass through.
A second temporary waterway is planned south of the disaster site, with a slightly deeper draft of 15 feet, and is expected to open “in the coming days,” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said in a speech Monday. said. In any case, the area is still far from fully reopened, with many obstructions and draft restrictions. This is all part of a “phased” reopening of the port.
Moore told the nation:
A temporary waterway on the northeast side of the collapse opened earlier today and will help allow more vessels into the waters around the collapse site. The temporary waterway will have government lighting to aid navigation, and the water depth will be controlled to 11 feet. We are also currently building a southwest passage for deeper draft ships, which will allow for deeper drafts. The channel is approximately 15 feet deep and is expected to open within the next few days.
Coastguard Rear Admiral Gilreath also spoke about this progress, saying that while he was proud to have completed a new interim route under the remaining portion of the north side of the bridge, securing the central deep channel remained a top priority. He said there is. He said, “What we’re discovering is that it’s more complicated than we originally expected…The diving situation, under, is very complicated…more than we expected.” RADM. Mr Gilreath said more cranes were being pulled up to remove the water, and the first lift of the steel debris had taken place, with another to follow on Monday afternoon.
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – APRIL 1: Debris of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge rests on a cargo ship.Dali leads efforts to remove debris and reopen the Port of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland. It starts on April 1, 2024. Two survivors were pulled from the Patapsco River and six people missing were presumed dead after the Coast Guard called off rescue efforts. Workers were repairing a hole in the bridge, which is used by about 30,000 people every day, when the ship struck. The accident led to the temporary closure of the Port of Baltimore, the largest and busiest port on the U.S. East Coast. (Photo by Tasos Katapodis/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – APRIL 1: Debris of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge rests on a cargo ship.Dali leads efforts to remove debris and reopen the Port of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland. It starts on April 1, 2024. Two survivors were pulled from the Patapsco River and six people missing were presumed dead after the Coast Guard called off rescue efforts. Workers were repairing a hole in the bridge, which is used by about 30,000 people every day, when the ship struck. The accident led to the temporary closure of the Port of Baltimore, the largest and busiest port on the U.S. East Coast. (Photo by Tasos Katapodis/Getty Images)
Governor Moore stated that these tasks were quite difficult and required a huge amount of materials, and elaborated as follows: “The whole job took him 10 hours, during which time they were able to cut and lift a 200-ton span of the bridge…which was” a relatively small elevator. We are talking about about 200 tons, and something almost as large as the Statue of Liberty… Obviously, the scale of this project is huge, even a small elevator is huge. ”
Limiting factors included “chaotic wreckage,” murky waters, and danger to divers.
The first ship through the new waterway passed late Monday, with the Crystal Coast, a fuel barge being pushed by tugboats, in less than 9 feet of water. An exclusion zone remains in place around the Baltimore Bridge and the wreckage of the MV Dali container ship that collided with it, and no watercraft may operate in the area (including through temporary channels) without permission from the Harbor Master. ) means. As previously mentioned, these may be limited to emergency and construction traffic.
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – APRIL 1: Debris of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge rests on a cargo ship.Dali leads efforts to remove debris and reopen the Port of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland. It starts on April 1, 2024. Two survivors were pulled from the Patapsco River and six people missing were presumed dead after the Coast Guard called off rescue efforts. Workers were repairing a hole in the bridge, which is used by about 30,000 people every day, when the ship struck. The accident led to the temporary closure of the Port of Baltimore, the largest and busiest port on the U.S. East Coast. (Photo by Tasos Katapodis/Getty Images)
