On 27 March 2024, Investigators recovered a data recorder from the Dali container ship that collided with the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore Harbour. The collision caused a portion of the bridge to collapse, leading to the unfortunate death of eight construction workers. The ship lost power just before the collision, and the data recorder will provide insight into the malfunction.
The investigation will focus on the loss of power and whether the bridge should have been better equipped to withstand the impact. Video footage shows the ship losing power before the collision, possibly due to contaminated fuel. The National Transportation Safety Board is examining a sample of the ship’s fuel to determine if impurities played a role in the incident.
The Key Bridge, completed in 1977, was not designed to withstand impacts from vessels as large as the Dali. The lack of redundancies in the bridge’s design is being questioned, as it could lead to catastrophic collapse in such cases. Authorities may have underestimated the risk of a large ship colliding with the bridge, leading to a lack of necessary reinforcements.
In light of this tragic event, bridge owners worldwide are reevaluating safety measures to prevent similar incidents in the future. Lessons learned from this disaster will contribute to the design and construction of even safer bridges in the future.
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