What went wrong in the Baltimore Key Bridge collapse: engineering expert explains
What went wrong? Engineering expert discusses Key Bridge collapse
What went wrong with the Key Bridge and how long will it take to rebuild following the collapse? Rachel Sangree, an associate professor of engineering with Johns Hopkins University, discusses what happened with the structure and what the next steps could look like.
WASHINGTON - Early Tuesday morning, Baltimore's Key Bridge in Maryland collapsed and left devastation across the region.
Six people are now presumed dead following the collapse. However, recovery efforts remain ongoing as dive teams search for the construction workers, who had been part of an eight-person crew.
What went wrong in the Baltimore Key Bridge collapse?
Rachel Sangree, who is an associate professor of engineering at Johns Hopkins University, says it's "shocking to see such a large structure made of strong materials, steels, and reinforced concrete to come down so seemingly easily."
Sangree says the way the bridge is constructed, it shares load across the three spans pictured in the collapse that ultimately ended up falling. The third span was left unsupported once the ship collided with the bridge.
Key Bridge collapse: A timeline of the tragedy in Baltimore
Early Tuesday morning, a large container ship left port in the Baltimore Harbor, bound for Colombo, Sri Lanka. But the vessel never made it out of the harbor and disaster struck minutes after it set sail.
"A very large shipping vessel lost control and collided with one of the piers of the bridge. The pier is critical to supporting at least the spans, at least the steel truss spans on either side of that pier," said Sangree.
The ship, called the Dali, was headed from Baltimore to Colombo, Sri Lanka, and flying under a Singapore flag, according to data from Marine Traffic. The container ship is about 985 feet long and about 157 feet wide, according to the website.
What is the rebuilding process of the Baltimore Key Bridge?
President Joe Biden pledged the federal government's support during a speech from the White House just before 1 p.m. "I've directed my team to move heaven and earth to reopen the port and rebuild the bridge as soon as humanly possible," he said.
"We're with you, we're going to stay with you, as long as it takes. Like the Governor said, you're Maryland tough, you're Baltimore strong, and we're going to get through this together. And I promise we're not leaving."
Biden also stated the federal government would pay for the entire cost of rebuilding the bridge and reopening the port that was forced closed.
Sangree says when thinking about the rebuild of the bridge, it's hard to speculate on the previous design and whether it will remain the same.
"There is nothing inherently wrong or deficient with that type of design, it was the impact of the vessel on the pier."
Sangree says following an investigation of the collapse there will likely be consideration of pier protective measures to be in place during the rebuilding process. "It's important to look at the rebuilding of the bridge from a whole system's perspective, the shipping channel and surface transportation structure, being the bridge."
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore also spoke about the rebuilding process Wednesday morning.
"In terms of the rebuild, we really have to make sure that we are coordinated. We have to make sure that we are communicating, and we have to make sure that we get it complete. And that has got to be the focus on getting our economic engine going and also restoring a sense of pride to Baltimore and Maryland because this port is a huge point of pride that we have for this state," Moore said.
What to know about the Francis Scott Key Bridge
Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge stretches 1.6 miles and crosses over the Patapsco River in Maryland. The bridge opened in 1977 as the final link in I-695 Baltimore Beltway and spans the Patapsco River at the entrance to a busy harbor.
The river leads to the Port of Baltimore, a major hub for shipping on the East Coast that also provides convenient and safe transportation for local and interstate traffic.