Baltimore bridge collapse: ship pilots and crew praised; survivor search yields to recovery and investigation

• Baltimore bridge collapse could cause significant supply chain disruption
• ’Developing mass casualty event’ as ship strike collapses bridge in US

Insurance and liability questions

The container ship is insured with Britannia Protection and Indemnity (P&I), a mutual insurance association owned by shipping companies. Britannia has confirmed, saying, "We can confirm the ship Dali is entered with Britannia P&I Club. We are working closely with the ship manager and relevant authorities to establish the facts and to help ensure this situation is dealt with quickly and professionally."

Discussing general costs and similar incidents, Allianz Commercial global head of marine risk consulting Captain Rahul Khanna said the scope of the incident is expansive in terms of potential liability.

"Initial reports indicate the nature of the incident is likely to fall within the scope of P&I coverage which covers third-party liability for vessels including damage to fixed or floating objects. Outside of the implications from any tragic loss of life, the nature of the incident points to a sizeable loss, given the extent of the damage to the bridge and the surrounding area. Other potential losses could result from blocked port access, cargo loss, any environmental implications etc," Captain Khanna said. 

The company also cited the growing costs of salvage and wreck removal operations, pointing to salvage work on the car carrier Golden Ray which capsized just outside the US port of Brunswick in 2019, took almost two years and cost in excess of US$800M. The operation, the largest ever of its kind in the US, involved three million man hours and specialist equipment to cut the ship into eight pieces for removal.

"The rising cost of salvage and wreck removal for large vessels is a particularly worrying trend for the insurance industry. The complexity is compounded by environmental concerns, which continue to drive up the average cost of such incidents. Wreck removal for a large vessel can now easily run into the hundreds of millions of dollars, and in some cases upwards of US$500M," Allianz said.

Several media outlets have cited the American Pilots’ Association (APA) trade group’s executive director Clay Diamond as confirming Dali had suffered a "complete blackout" after it left the Port of Baltimore. Mr Diamond said his information came from Maryland’s harbour pilots’ group members in the APA.

It is being reported widely that Dali had been cited for a propulsion deficiency during an inspection in the port of San Antonio, Chile, in June 2023. 

Mr Diamond also said the harbour pilot in command had ordered the vessel to be turned and an anchor dropped in an attempt to halt or slow the ship’s drift toward the Key Bridge.

According to The New York Times report, Dali had been following standard practices for vessels leaving Baltimore’s harbour prior to its power failure. Vessel-tracking data shows tugboats guiding the ship out of its berth before departing from the vessel, which the report said was common practice at the port.

The vessel’s owners, Grace Ocean of Singapore, are making joint statements on the situation through the ship’s operator Synergy Marine Group’s website but have not addressed the cause of the incident.

The latest update said an emergency response team had been dispatched to Baltimore to support efforts "to ensure crew safety, maintain vessel integrity and facilitate the swift and safe reopening of the waterway," noting that US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and USCG representatives had boarded Dali to carry out investigations.

NTSB chairwoman Jennifer Homendy said in a press conference on 27 March that investigators will focus on multiple issues, including what the vessel’s onboard recording devices reveal as well as whether the vessel had dropped its anchor when it lost power. The NTSB is leading the investigation with USCG support.

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