Maryland Gov. Wes Moore provided an update Thursday evening on recovery efforts in the wake of the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, saying there was a "long road ahead."
Sharing the podium with Democratic Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, Moore said, "there is nothing that we will not do" to ensure a swift and proper conclusion.
The Democratic governor thanked the Biden administration for greenlighting his request for $60 million in federal aid to jumpstart recovery efforts.
Gov. Moore said it was imperative to clear the channel and open vessel traffic to the port because "the health of the Maryland economy and the national economy depends on it."
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"We need to take care of all the people who have been affected by this crisis. And that means the families of the workers. That means businesses. That means the first responders. That means everybody," Moore said.
Eight construction workers, all of whom were from Central America, plummeted into the water after the Dali, a Singaporean-flagged container ship, slammed into the bridge, causing it to collapse. Two were rescued after the collapse. Divers have recovered the bodies of two others, and the other four are presumed dead.
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For those whose jobs have been affected, Moore said the Maryland Department of Labor has established a hotline for unemployment insurance.
Moore and his team traveled to the wreckage Wednesday morning to see the disaster up close.
"You’ve had the chance to see the wreckage from far away. Yesterday, we had a chance to see it up close," Moore said.
He highlighted the complexities of the operation, noting that divers "cannot see any more than a foot or two in front of them" because the water is so dark and the debris is so dense.
"I want to be clear, this work will not take hours. This work will not take days. This work will not just take weeks," the governor said. "We have a very long road ahead of us."
The sudden loss of a highway that carries 30,000 vehicles a day and the port disruption will affect not only thousands of dockworkers and commuters but also U.S. consumers, who are likely to feel the impact of shipping delays.
Moore said the Army Corps is moving the largest crane in the Eastern Seaboard and is expected to arrive Thursday evening to help lift debris and wreckage out of the port.
The cargo ship struck a pillar supporting the bridge early Tuesday after losing power. Synergy Marine Group, which manages the Dali, said the captain and crew are all Indian.
The Dali was headed from Baltimore to Sri Lanka. It is owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd., and Danish shipping giant Maersk said it had chartered it.
The huge vessel was carrying more than 4,000 metal shipping containers, 56 of them with hazardous materials inside. Thirteen of those were destroyed, officials said. Booms were placed to control the spread of any oil that seeped into the water, and state environmental officials were also sampling the water Thursday.
