WASHINGTON, SEPT 19 – The United States (US) Department of Justice yesterday sued the owner and operator of the cargo ship that crashed into the Baltimore bridge, to recover more than US$100 million in costs, the German News Agency (dpa) reported.
A cargo ship crashed into one of the support columns of the four-lane Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore harbor on March 26, causing it to collapse and killing six workers who were carrying out routine construction at the time.
The Department of Justice filed a civil suit against Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Private Limited, the Singapore company that owns and operates the ship.
“The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring accountability for those responsible for the destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which resulted in the tragic deaths of six people and disrupted our nation’s transportation and defense infrastructure,” said US Attorney General Merrick Garland.
“With this civil lawsuit, the Department of Justice is working to ensure that the cost of clearing the channel and reopening the Port of Baltimore is borne by the company that caused the accident, not by the American taxpayer.”
About 50,000 tons of steel, concrete and asphalt were removed from the channel and from the ship, during the recovery effort.
According to preliminary findings, there was a problem with the ship’s power supply before the accident. – Named
