Plunged into complete darkness due to a power outage, the crew of the 100,000-ton container ship Dali urgently contacted Baltimore police to alert them about an imminent disaster that seemed unstoppable.
Just after departing from the port around 1:30 am on Tuesday, March 26, 2024, the massive vessel suddenly lost all power, leading to the shutdown of its engines and causing the rudder to become stuck in position.
Laden with cargo, the enormous ship found itself completely out of control, coasting solely on its own momentum directly towards the 1.5-mile-long Francis Scott Key Bridge located at the harbor’s entrance.
Police who were stationed near the bridge jumped into action, closing off the roadway in a race against time as the ship ploughed directly towards one of the support piers.
A critical four minutes went by as the Dali’s crew attempted to restore power and the anchor was dropped in a final attempt to stop the ship in its tracks. But it was in vain.
The 300-metre long ship collided straight into the bridge’s support columns, bringing the massive steel structure crashing into the icy waters of the Patapsco River in just 30 seconds.
The final car traversing the bridge made it off only a mere 40 seconds before the bridge’s dramatic collapse.
Tragically, police were unable to reach six workers who were working late to fix potholes in the middle of the road deck.
All were killed when they were plunged into the cold Atlantic water along with the bridge.
Another man who was unable to make it off the bridge was pulled away from the water, and survived – although he sustained horrific injuries.
A second survivor Julio Cervantes – who was unable to swim – was able to survive after escaping through the window of a work vehicle and clinging to debris.
“He fought for his life, and he survived,” his attorney Justin Miller but his team said he was left “with severe mental and emotional pain and suffering”.
Authorities jumped into action, aghast at the disaster that had just unfolded.
Bodycam footage from first responders revealed their shock and disbelief at what had just happened.
“Key Bridge is down. And several people are still unaccounted for,” an officer can be heard saying.
Now, in a new BBC one documentary, which airs tonight, the inside story of the disaster and the desperate salvage operation afterwards is revealed.
Wrecking ball
The Dali – fortunately – was still afloat, though trapped under a warped mess of steel and concrete.
Despite the efforts of the Dali’s crew disaster was inevitable, explains Professor Sal Mercogliano, an expert on shipping and a former merchant mariner himself.
“The worst sound on a ship is silence, because silence means you don’t have control,” he told The Sun.
“You’re at the mercy of the ship – that had to be the longest four minutes in the life of the crew ever.”
By a stroke of bad luck, the point at which the Dali lost power its momentum took it straight towards the bridge’s pier – the one point where a collision would bring the whole structure down.
“If the ship had lost power 30 seconds earlier, or 30 seconds later, then this disaster wouldn’t have happened,” he explained.
“Earlier, and it would have missed the pier. Later, and it would have drifted under the bridge’s main archway.”
Diving danger
As the dust settled, the scale of the operation to clear the debris and reopen the channel became clear.
It was basically like a metal jungle gym down there
Robyn Bianchi
One of the largest ports on America’s East Coast it handles cargo worth £60 billion a year and supports over 20,000 jobs.
And with the shutdown costing a whopping £15 million a day, it was now a race against time to reopen the port to shipping.
As assistant salvage master for Donjon Marine, one of the companies tasked with clearing the channel, Robyn Bianchi has spent most of her life working in salvage, both for the US Navy and privately.
But the task that lay before them was like nothing she had faced before.
Before they could start thinking about moving the bridge, the first step was to assess the debris in the water with divers – a high risk operation where no shortcuts can be taken.
Working seven days a week, and up to 18 hours a day, it was over two and a half months before the final piece of wreckage was removed.
“I don’t think this is comparable to anything on any scale that I’ve ever been part of,” Robyn told The Sun.
“There’s no visibility. It was dark, it was cold – you’re essentially going down into the water and you’ve got no idea what to expect.
“It was basically like a metal jungle gym down there.”
The recovery operation also uncovered the bodies of the six workers who died when the bridge came crashing down.
Father-of-three Miguel Luna, 36, was one of them.
Speaking to the Washington Post, one of his children, Marvin, said he knew where his dad was working but did not know about the disaster until a friend called with the news.
Marvin tried to call his dad’s phone – but there was no response.
Alejandro Fuentes, 35, was another victim and was found trapped in a pick up truck nearly eight metres below the surface.
Alongside him was his workmate, Dorlian Cabrera, 26.
One was identified by a driver’s license, while the other was identified via fingerprint, according to the Maryland Department of State Police.
Trapped on board
It wasn’t until 43 days after the collapse that the final body of one of the workers who died – that of Jose Lopez, 35 – was recovered and returned to his family.
All the while the cleanup operation was underway, the Sri Lankan and Indian crew of the ship Dali were stuck onboard, unable to leave due to visa restrictions.
Worst of all, they had their phones confiscated due to an FBI criminal investigation into the causes of the accident.
I think it could happen tomorrow
Sal Mercogliano
According to Sal Mercogliano, it’s unlikely the crew were able to leave the ship until up to a whole nine months after the incident – once it had docked in China for repairs.
A report is currently underway into what precisely caused the Dali to lose power and head on a collision course with the Francis Scott Key bridge.
Preliminary investigations discovered a loose cable that caused a power surge, disrupting the electricity supply.
Improperly-functioning generators could have also prevented fail-safe systems from kicking in as they should have.
The incident has left questions over the safety of shipping and ports.
In the shipping world however, change to regulation and practices often only comes after disaster.
“I think it could happen tomorrow,” Sal added.
“What we find in shipping is that a lot of regulation is written in blood – something has to go wrong before things are fixed.”
Why Bridges Collapse: The Baltimore Disasters airs on BBC One at 9:00 PM , on Thursday 5 December, as is available to stream on iPlayer.
