Crews prepare explosives for controlled demolition of Key Bridge section atop Dali

BALTIMORE — Salvage crews have been preparing explosive charges that will be used in a controlled demolition of the section of the Key Bridge that landed atop the Dali container ship, officials said Thursday, which will allow the vessel to eventually return to the Port of Baltimore.

The Key Bridge Unified Command, which is heading recovery and salvage efforts, released photos showing close-ups of the portion of the bridge, called Section 4, that landed on the Dali’s bow after the vessel struck one of the bridge’s support pillars on March 26. The span immediately collapsed into the Patapsco River.

Six construction workers who had been repairing potholes on the bridge were killed.

“The safest and swiftest method to remove the bridge piece from on top of the M/V Dali is by precision cuts made with small charges,” according to a Unified Command statement. “This is an industry-standard tool in controlled demolition that will break the span into smaller pieces, which will allow the work of refloating the vessel and removing it from the federal channel.”

The release did not say when the controlled explosions would take place. The removal of the bridge debris will allow the Dali which, with its crew, has been trapped in the river for more than six weeks, to return to port.

But The Baltimore Sun has obtained an email that indicates the ship is expected to be moored at the Seagirt Terminal “on or about May 14.”

Sent to attorneys of “claimants” against the shipping company and manager, the email says they will be allowed to come onto the vessel for inspections they requested — but only after the National Transportation Safety Board, which plans to be aboard on Tuesday and Wednesday, disembarks.

The email says claimants will be permitted aboard the ship starting May 20. It asks the claimants to limit the number of those boarding to experts and attorneys and to specify the area of the ship they want to inspect and the amount of time they need.

“We will have to stagger attendances to accommodate the various claimants,” the email said.

“In addition, salvage work at the bow of the vessel may restrict access to the bow,” according to the email from William “Bill” R. Bennett III, who represents Grace Ocean Private Ltd., the owner of the Dali, and Synergy Marine Pte Ltd., its management company.

The NTSB, along with the FBI and other agencies, is investigating the collapse of the bridge. The city of Baltimore has filed a claim against the shipping companies for negligence, as has an Essex-based publisher, saying the incident has caused it and other companies a loss of business.

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