Shipping terminal readies to absorb more vessels

BALTIMORE — The only maritime shipping terminal operating in the Port of Baltimore is preparing to process an influx of ships as crews continue clearing the mangled wreckage of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge.

Tradepoint Atlantic will unload an estimated 10,000 vehicles over the next 15 days, according to a company statement. That includes six regularly scheduled ships and nine others redirected as access to the port’s main terminals remains blocked, posing a logistical nightmare for shipping along the East Coast.

Crews opened a second temporary channel through the collapse site Tuesday, but it’s too shallow for most commercial vessels. The two alternate channels are meant to aid in the cleanup effort. Work continues to open a third channel that will allow larger vessels to pass through the bottleneck and restore more commercial activity, officials said.

Meanwhile, bad weather has hindered salvage operations. The Patapsco River is murky, limiting the visibility of divers.

The bridge fell March 26 after being struck by the cargo ship Dali, which lost power shortly after leaving

Baltimore, bound for Sri Lanka. The ship issued a mayday alert with just enough time for police to stop traffic but not enough to save a roadwork crew filling potholes on the bridge.

Authorities think six of the workers plunged to their deaths in the collapse, including two whose bodies were recovered last week. Two others survived. The ship remains stationary, its 21 crew members still aboard.

The sheer volume of debris dwarfs even the cranes and barges involved in the cleanup. And that’s only the view from above: Officials said underwater conditions are significantly more challenging.