President Biden spoke about his family’s ties to the city of Baltimore, Maryland, during a visit Friday to the site where a cargo ship crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge last week, killing six construction workers.
In his remarks, Biden said “heaven and earth” would move to rebuild the new bridge, while also expressing support for the state and city of Maryland.
“The nation is rooting for you, and we really mean it,” Biden said.
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President Joe Biden (right) participates in a briefing on the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge response and recovery efforts in Dundalk, Maryland, on Friday. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Senator)
Biden, who said his father grew up in Baltimore and still has family in the area, heard about continued efforts to clear waterways, restore ships and open road traffic near the city’s ports. Ta.
He noted that opening the Port of Baltimore is a major priority and said the shipping shortage will impact other ports across the country. In order to do so, it is necessary to clear the shipping lanes in order to secure the shipping routes for commercial ships.
“This is one of the largest shipping hubs in the country,” he said.
“Thousands of tons of broken steel remains underwater, blocking ships from entering and leaving the port,” he said.
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President Joe Biden gave an aerial tour of Baltimore’s collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge aboard Marine One on Friday. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Senator)
The bridge collapsed last week after being hit by the cargo ship Dali, and the power went out in the early morning hours of March 26. The collapse occurred shortly after the ship began its voyage from Baltimore to Sri Lanka.
The ship issued a mayday warning, giving police enough time to stop traffic, but not enough to save the six construction workers filling the hole in the bridge. Two of the bodies were recovered from the Patapsco River.
“Ten days ago, a piece of Baltimore’s skyline and a piece of Baltimore’s spirit fell into the river,” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said before introducing Biden.
Mr. Biden has promised that the federal government will pay for the new bridge and has asked Congress to approve legislation to do so.
Debris of the Francis Scott Key Bridge remains aboard the container ship Dali as President Joe Biden tours the collapsed bridge from above in Baltimore, Maryland, on Friday. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Senator)
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Synergy Marine Group, which manages the ship, and owner Grace Ocean filed a motion with the court on Monday seeking to limit liability, a standard practice in lawsuits filed under U.S. maritime law. However, it is an important procedure.
Fox News Digital’s Bradford Betz contributed to this report.
