The largest crane on the East Coast of the United States arrived in the city of Baltimore to remove debris from the bridge that collapsed last Tuesday due to the collision of a ship, an accident that left six dead and multimillion-dollar losses.
The crane, which can lift up to 1,000 tons of weight, will be one of two that will be involved in cleaning the canal of the metal and concrete remains left from the bridge, said Maryland Governor Wes Moore, who stated that We are working “at full speed” to reopen the canal and restart traffic.
So far, Moore has not dared to give a chronology of when the city, whose port is still closed, will be able to return to normal after the accident: “I can tell you that it will not be days, weeks or months” but that “this is going to happen.” Take time.”
Before removal, an evaluation of the debris is being done, which is considered “critical” before removing it from the water to determine the size to which the bridge pieces will have to be cut so that the cranes can lift them.
The portion of the bridge on top of the ship weighs between 3,000 and 4,000 tons, which is heavier than the crane can currently lift.
“When you have the opportunity to see those remains up close, you fully understand the enormity of the challenge,” the governor noted.
Moore also noted that as part of the efforts being made, more than 2,300 feet of barriers have been put in place to contain any possible pollution leak from the ship that impacted the bridge or its cargo.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board, 56 containers on the ship contain hazardous materials, mostly corrosive and flammable, as well as some ion batteries, while 14 containers contain perfumes and soaps, among others.
For his part, Shannon Gilreath, Rear Admiral of the Coast Guard, specified the progress made so far in the authorities’ priority of reopening the channel.
There are three phases to the task: first, reopening the shipping channel, which is what is being worked on, then removing the freighter, and finally removing bridge debris from the rest of the waterway.
Regarding the people who lost their lives, all of them Latino construction employees, the bodies of two of them were found. At the moment the efforts to recover the bodies of the other four are paralyzed for the moment due to the presence of debris, but Moore asserted that it is a priority.
Likewise, Brandon Scott, mayor of the city of Baltimore, expressed that he remains hopeful of finding the deceased who are still under the rubble of the bridge.
The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge stopped the passage of ships and caused the closure of the port, one of the main ports in the United States in the Atlantic. The value of the goods that circulate daily through the port facilities is between $100 and $200 million dollars.
Other ports, including New York-New Jersey, have stepped forward to prevent the food supply chain that depended on that infrastructure from being interrupted.
Likewise, senior leaders from the White House, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Transportation met with agricultural and food industry stakeholders at the federal and state levels to “discuss the impacts on the sectors agricultural and food after the collapse of the bridge.”
In a statement, the White House did not offer further details about the content of the meeting, which follows yesterday’s meeting between US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg with ports, labor groups and industry partners to discuss how to mitigate current and future supply chain disruptions.
“Food and agriculture sector participants noted that they are working to gather more information from producers about the direct and indirect impacts they have seen from the partial port closure, as well as the need for the federal government to monitor operations at other ports.” from the east coast to which shipments are being diverted,” the text says.
Keep reading:
- The Baltimore tragedy points to the risk for Latino workers: “Insecurity is daily”
- Baltimore: Why did they suspend the search for Hispanics missing due to bridge collapse?
- Baltimore police audio reveals the moments before the ship collided with the bridge