1st container ship docks at Baltimore’s Seagirt Terminal since bridge collapse

The Port of Baltimore welcomed its first commercial containership on Sunday, April 28, since the suspension of vessel traffic following the Francis Scot Key Bridge collapse on March 26.

Namely, MSC’s 2,872 TEU Sub Panamax vessel, MSC Passion III, arrived at Ports America Chesapeake’s Seagirt Terminal via the newly opened 35-foot-deep alternative channel.

Approximately 1,000 containers were handled by around 80 workers from the International Longshoremen Association, the port authority said.

Another milestone today! First container ship to arrive at Seagirt Terminal since the crisis began. @MSCCargo Passion III came through 35-foot-deep temporary channel. Nearly 1,000 containers handled by about 80 @ILALocal333 workers. We’re getting there… @portsamericahq pic.twitter.com/jBAnPbLatd

— Port of Baltimore (@portofbalt) April 28, 2024

Passion III was joined by the Columbia Freedom barge at the terminal, which saw loading and discharging of 442 containers. The barge is part of a coastal service between the Port of Baltimore and Port of Virginia.

Today we resumed service to Baltimore via the Columbia Coastal barge service! This service will be in coordination with Baltimore’s reopening and continuing to support them through this barge service. We will continue to support the Baltimore shipping community. pic.twitter.com/30pt7w47WX

— The Port of Virginia (@PortofVirginia) April 24, 2024

The return of container ships signifies a crucial step forward in the port’s recovery process, signaling a gradual return to normalcy since the Dali containership struck the bridge, causing it to collapse and claiming the lives of six construction workers.

The channel, named the Fort McHenry Limited Access Channel, was opened last week, allowing for the first large commercial vessels that have been stranded in the port for a month to finally navigate out of the port.

Read more: First commercial ships sail through Baltimore’s deep-draft channel

Operations to remove the M/V Dali will require suspension of transits through the Fort McHenry Limited Access Channel, according to the Unified Command overseeing the response operation. A total of 137 containers of the estimated 180 necessary to access the portion of the bridge atop the M/V Dali have been removed, the command said.

The three other temporary channels currently in use will remain available and commercial vessels should plan to utilize those channels so not to impede vessel traffic that must use the 35-foot deep channel. Once deemed safe, the channel will reopen for commercial traffic.

Data from the Unified Command shows that one month after the accident, 171 commercial vessels have transited the four alternate channels, including five of the vessels waiting to depart the Port of Baltimore since March 26.

USACE expects to reopen the Port of Baltimore’s permanent 50-foot deep channel by the end of May.

Over 350 personnel from 53 federal, state, and local agencies, along with 553 contract specialists, are currently deployed in Baltimore for recovery and salvage operations. Their efforts, supported by a fleet of 36 barges, 27 tugboats, 22 floating cranes, and various other equipment, have been tasked to tackle the estimated 50,000 tons of wreckage at the Francis Scott Key Bridge site.