FBI Opens Criminal Investigation Of Baltimore Bridge Collapse

FBI officers at the location of the Baltimore bridge that collapsed were hit by a cargo ship. (Wikimedia Commons/FBI Baltimore Field Office)

JAKARTA - The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced on Monday, opening a criminal investigation into the collapse of the Baltimore bridge, Maryland in March that a ship crashed into a bridge buffer, while local officials confirmed the discovery of the fourth body from the incident.

Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed into the Patapsco River in the early hours of March 26, killing six people who were working on the bridge at the time, after the large container ship lost power and hit a buffer pole. The bodies of two victims are still missing.

When the accident occurred, the Cargo Dali ship was leaving Baltimore on its way to Colombo, Sri Lanka, with 21 crew, plus two pilots to guide it out of port.

FBI agents boarded the Kargo Dali Ship to carry out court-approved law enforcement activities in connection with the crash, an FBI spokesman said. The spokesman said no other public information was available and the bureau would not provide further comment.

The bodies of the fourth victim were found on Monday, after divers saw what they believed was a missing construction vehicle, in which they found the body, Key Bridge Unified Command said in a statement. Details about the identity of the victim were not published at the request of the family.

Investigations into the ship's collapse will largely focus on whether the crew of the Dali ship left port, knowing the cargo ship had serious problems with its system, the Washington Post reported earlier.

Safety investigators have found a ship's "blackbox" recorder, which provides data on position, speed, direction, radar, and audio and radio communications of the bridge, as well as alarms.

Meanwhile, Baltimore authorities said on Monday they hired two law firms, DiCello Levitt and Salt Mongeluzzi Bendesky Trial Lawyers, as they considered litigation of the ship's owners, tenants, and operators.

The registered owner of the Singapore-flagged ship is Grace Ocean Pte Ltd. Synergy Marine Group manages the ship and Maersk charters the ship.

The head of the US National Transportation Safety Council separately told Congress last week its investigators had interviewed important cargo ship personnel as part of its investigation.

Meanwhile, work to clean up the ruins and restore traffic through the Baltimore port shipping route continues.

Replacement of the bridge is likely to take years, but authorities have opened two temporary lanes to allow some ships with shallow drafts to move around damaged container ships. The US Army Engineer Corps said two weeks ago it was expected to open a new route to Baltimore Harbor by the end of April.

Previously, the same ship was also involved in an incident at the port ofturnerp, Belgium, in 2016, when the ship crashed into a dock while trying to get out of the North Sea container terminal.

Inspections in June 2023 conducted in San Antonio, Chile, found the ship had flaws on propulsion engines and auxiliary machines, according to data on the Equasis public website, which provides information about ships.

Meanwhile, according to the Maritime Authority and Singapore Port, the ship passed foreign port inspections in June and September.