RECAP: How did The Dali Ship crash into Francis Scott Key Bridge?
Summary
TLDRThe tragic incident involving the MV Dolly cargo ship colliding with Baltimore's Key Bridge is under investigation. The ship's voyage data recorder has been recovered, offering insights into the final moments before the accident. The National Transportation Safety Board is analyzing the data to develop a timeline of events. The disaster has raised concerns about the size of cargo ships and their potential impact on infrastructure. The economic repercussions are significant, with the Port of Baltimore being a crucial economic engine for the state.
Takeaways
- 🚢 The MV Dolly cargo ship's black box, or voyage data recorder (VDR), has been recovered and is being analyzed by the National Transportation Safety Board to understand the events leading up to the collision with Baltimore's Key Bridge.
- 🌉 The accident resulted in the collapse of the Key Bridge and the presumption of six contractors' deaths, affecting their loved ones deeply.
- 📈 The VDR captures crucial data such as the ship's heading, speed, water depth, and the condition of the engines, thrusters, and rudder, along with audio from the bridge.
- 🛑 Despite the pilot making all the right calls in a timely manner, the ship still careened into the bridge, highlighting the challenge of preventing such incidents in the future.
- 🔍 The search for the missing has been hampered by poor weather, making it too dangerous to continue under the risky conditions.
- 🚨 A simulation conducted aboard a cargo ship similar in size to the Dolly provided insights into what could have happened during a total blackout situation, including emergency measures taken to prevent the collision.
- 🌃 The simulation also highlighted the added difficulty of navigating and judging distances in darkness, which could have been a factor in the accident.
- 📚 The incident in Baltimore Harbor will likely be studied for decades, providing lessons learned for future maritime training and safety protocols.
- 🚧 The disruption to the Port of Baltimore has significant economic implications, with a daily impact of $191 million and 15,000 jobs directly dependent on the port's operations.
- 🌐 The accident raises questions about the size of cargo ships and their potential for causing damage when things go wrong, potentially leading to reconsiderations of ship sizes in international trade.
Q & A
What happened to the MV Dolly cargo ship?
-The MV Dolly cargo ship experienced a total blackout, causing it to lose control and collide with Baltimore's Key Bridge, leading to its collapse.
What was discovered from the ship's Black Box?
-The voyage data recorder, or Black Box, from the MV Dolly was recovered and is being analyzed to develop a timeline of events that led up to the collision with the bridge.
What safety measures were taken by the crew during the emergency?
-The crew attempted to drop anchor as a last-ditch emergency maneuver to prevent the ship from hitting the bridge.
What challenges did investigators face in the search for the missing?
-The search for the missing was hampered by poor weather and heavy rain, which made continuing the search too dangerous.
How does a total blackout affect a ship's operations?
-A total blackout results in the loss of all propulsion and steering capabilities, leaving the ship helpless and unable to maneuver effectively to avoid obstacles or disasters.
What are the potential implications of the Baltimore bridge disaster on international shipping?
-The disaster may lead to a reevaluation of the size of ships and the potential damage they can cause when things go wrong, possibly affecting global supply chains and port infrastructure considerations.
What was the economic impact of the Port of Baltimore closure due to the bridge disaster?
-The closure of the Port of Baltimore, a significant economic engine for the state, resulted in an immediate impact of $191 million a day, affecting 15,000 jobs directly and many more indirectly.
How did the incident affect the cruise industry in Baltimore?
-Several cruise lines had to reroute operations out of Baltimore, with some ships being diverted to other ports, causing significant disruption to the industry.
What were the previous incidents involving ships managed by Synergy Maritime?
-In the last six years, there have been three deadly incidents recorded, including an accident with a ship elevator in Australia, a missing officer in Singapore, and a collision between a tanker and a dredging ship that killed at least one sailor.
What was the condition of the MV Dolly before the incident?
-In June 2023, Chilean authorities reported a deficiency for unreadable pressure gauges related to propulsion and auxiliary machinery on the MV Dolly, raising questions about potential violations and habitual problems.
How do these incidents affect maritime education and training?
-Tragic accidents like the one in Baltimore Harbor will be studied for decades, with lessons learned applied to maritime education to better prepare students for emergencies on the bridge of a ship.
Outlines
🚢 Investigation into MV Dolly Accident and Blackout Scenario
This paragraph discusses the ongoing investigation into the MV Dolly cargo ship accident that led to the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge. The focus is on understanding the ship's final moments before the disaster and the efforts to recover the voyage data recorder, also known as the 'black box.' The data recorder is being analyzed to develop a timeline of events. Additionally, the paragraph explores a simulation of a total blackout situation aboard a ship, highlighting the challenges and emergency procedures in such scenarios, including dropping anchor and maneuvering without power. The risks associated with searching for missing crew members in dangerous conditions are also mentioned.
🌐 Implications of the MV Dolly Accident on International Trade and Maritime Safety
The second paragraph delves into the implications of the MV Dolly accident on international trade and maritime safety. It provides details about the ship's size and capacity, as well as the complex international ownership and insurance arrangements. The paragraph also covers the history of incidents involving ships managed by the Dolly's operator, Synergy Maritime, raising questions about potential habitual safety issues. The discussion extends to the impact of the accident on the Port of Baltimore, highlighting its economic significance and the potential need to reconsider the size of ships in light of the damage they can cause when accidents occur. The paragraph concludes with the broader economic consequences for the state of Maryland, emphasizing the importance of the port for both local and international trade.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡MV Dolly
💡Key Bridge
💡Voyage Data Recorder
💡Pothole Repair Contractors
💡National Transportation Safety Board
💡Full Blackout
💡Emergency Maneuvers
💡Synergy Maritime
💡Global Supply Chains
💡Port of Baltimore
💡Cruise Industry
Highlights
Investigators are examining the MV Dolly cargo ship's black box to understand the final moments before its collision with Baltimore's Key Bridge.
The collision resulted in the presumed death of six contractors working on pothole repair on the bridge.
The National Transportation Safety Board is analyzing the voyage data recorder to develop a timeline of the events leading up to the accident.
The ship's black box captures critical data such as heading, speed, water depth, and the condition of the engines, thrusters, and rudder, along with audio from the bridge.
Despite the pilot making all the correct calls, the ship still careened into the bridge due to a total blackout situation.
In the event of a total blackout, the crew would attempt emergency maneuvers, including dropping anchor and running the engine full astern to slow down the ship.
Poor weather conditions hampered the search for the missing, making it too dangerous to continue.
The simulation of a similar-sized cargo ship navigating in San Francisco Harbor helps to understand the potential scenarios that could have occurred on the MV Dolly.
The challenge is to learn from this accident to prevent similar incidents in the future.
The incident in Baltimore Harbor will likely be studied for decades, providing lessons learned for maritime education and emergency response.
International trade relies heavily on massive container ships like the MV Dolly, which can have catastrophic consequences when accidents occur.
The Port of Baltimore is a significant economic engine for the state, with a daily impact of $191 million and 15,000 jobs directly dependent on it.
The closure of the shipping channel affects not only the local economy but also the global supply chain, with millions of dollars' worth of cargo handled by the port each year.
Several cruise lines have had to reroute operations out of Baltimore due to the closure of the shipping channel.
The loss of lives in the accident is the most significant impact, outweighing the economic consequences.
The disaster highlights the importance of considering the size and potential risks of massive cargo ships in modern international trade.
The incident may lead to a reevaluation of the size limits for ships to prevent similar accidents and mitigate damage when things go wrong.
Transcripts
new questions are unfolding for
investigators now getting their first
look inside the crippled MV Dolly cargo
ship the latest goal is piecing together
the final frantic moments on board the
ship as it careened helplessly out of
control and into Baltimore's Key Bridge
causing it to collapse six contractors
doing pothole repair are now presumed
dead our thoughts and prayers are with
their loved ones whose lives are never
going to be the same the latest
Discovery the Do's Black Box known as a
voyage data recorder the dollies has
been recovered and is being analyzed by
the national Transportation safety board
we've sent that back to our lab to
evaluate and begin to develop a timeline
of events that led up to the strike on
the bridge uh and we hope to have that
information to share with the public
later today the recorder captures data
like heading speed and water depth as
well as the condition of the engines
thrusters and Rudder but also audio on
the ship's bridge where the crew called
for dropping anchor in a last ditch
emergency maneuver the pilot made all of
the right calls in a timely manner but
the uh the voice recorder will confirm
that and I think this
investigation uh all of the pieces are
in place uh to have a successful uh you
know conclusion the the real challenge
will be how do you prevent this from
happening again the search for the
missing Wednesday h hamstrung by poor
weather and heavy rain deemed too
dangerous to continue among the jagged
pieces of the bridge in the mury pamsco
river you could have 20 parts that are
suddenly going to change position diver
could be dead in a matter of seconds and
he wouldn't even know it so we are on a
cargo ship about the same size as the
dolly but we are navigating San
Francisco Harbor in this case uh this is
all a simulation but we have a real
captain captain organ mcmanis who is
going to walk us through possibly what
could have happened in a total blackout
situation as you call it aboard the
dolly yes so we have the uh the a Cadet
simulating the ma on watch we have
another Cadet on the helm uh go left 15
please and and the dolly would have lost
both propulsion and steering at a full
blackout they would have lost everything
full blackout you call it right so we
could run the blackout right now from
the control room
so there we go alarms will start going
off on The Bridge start getting alarms
the ma on watch is going to try to
figure out what the alarm is the engine
room is now calling to tell us what's
going on bridge made on Watch and in
this situation where you can see the
pylon coming and you know it is disaster
can you can you drop the anchor what are
what are the you guys train for these
scenarios we're going to you're going to
try to do everything you can to stop
from hitting it whether it's running the
engine full of stern to take the speed
off we've already come down to almost
stopped in the water now um and then
we'd be letting the anchors out if we
couldn't get the speed off the vessel
you can lower both anchors down and have
them drag or catch along the bottom to
create resistance to slow the ship down
but for that to work you need time and
you need distance the captain's going to
be dealing with the engine room and
getting on the phone and figuring out
what's going on so they would be going
over grab room right would be the I I
think it that's where the real chaos
that's where the real chaos is so now if
they call back and say we power the
first thing we're going to do is then go
emergency full of stern to try to stop
it looks like they do establish power
just before they hit the Pilon they hit
the bridge Billow of smoke comes out
they start trying to go a Stern get the
speed off this must have been high
anxiety at this point on the bridge
trying to deal with this oh and
Incredibly stressful watching that first
video clip when I saw the total power go
out on the ship I knew there was a major
problem going on so one other thing we
wanted to show you was what it would
look like at night we shot the
simulation during the day so we could
see everything but this is much more
what it would have looked like for the
dolly in Baltimore haror it complicates
things at night I take it it does you
have um you need the bridge dark so you
could see the lights outside but you
also have ambient light from the skyline
or The Terminal coming in it also uh in
darkness you lose some depth perception
which makes it a little challenging to
actually judge your distances as well so
it and it complicates moving around the
bridge at night and this is you teach at
State University New York Maritime
College I take it what happened in
Baltimore Harbor will be studied for
decades it will it'll become one of
those tragic accidents that we take
lessons learned from and then we apply
them to what we're teaching the students
of what to do in an emergency on the
bridge of a ship behemoths of the sea
International Trade depends on Mammoth
vessels like this container ships the
kind that brought down Baltimore's
Francis Scott Key Bridge in an instant
up close you realize just how huge these
ships really are this container ship
here it's a bit larger than the dolly
that is the Singaporean owned container
ship that brought down the bridge in
Baltimore this week the dolly was built
in 2015 and is 300 M or 984 ft long
capable of carrying up to 10,000 20t
shipping container ERS for a dizzying
variety of commercial interests when you
look at international shipping this is
this is kind of the typical case here's
a Singapore flag vessel with a Singapore
company uh leasing The Vessel to a
Danish company the insurance for the
cargo is British the classification
society that observes The Vessel as
Japanese there have been three deadly
incidents recorded aboard ships managed
by the do's operator Synergy Maritime in
the last 6 years an accident with a ship
elevator killed a crew member in
Australia in 2018 in 2019 an officer
went missing after having likely Fallen
overboard in Singapore and last year a
collision between a Synergy Maritime
tanker and a dredging ship killed at
least one sailor meanwhile in June of
2023 Chilean authorities briefly held
the dolly reporting a deficiency for
unreadable pressure gauges related to
propulsion and auxiliary Machinery this
is what you want you want you know
inspectors to go on board and find
issues and are they corrected now the
bigger issue here is going to be did
this ship have certain violations that
were causing it to you know indicate a
uh kind of a habitual problem Synergy
says it's cooperating with us
investigators and a spokesman tells CNN
it would be inappropriate to discuss any
previous incidents at this time
Singaporean transport officials say the
doll's crew reported a momentary loss of
propulsion shortly before it slammed
into the bridge in Baltimore look at the
size of this container ship next to Hong
Kong's stone cutter bridge at the time
the Francis Scott Key bridge was
constructed in the late' 70s container
ships like this simply didn't exist they
were not being built at that size and
scale in those days just last month
China witnessed a deadly cargo ship
Collision iion with a bridge on the
Pearl River in the city of Guang Joo at
least five people died as Vehicles
plunged off the stretch of collapsed
Bridge authorities initially blamed the
crew for the accident Global Supply
chains rely on these enormous ships to
move Goods around the world the
Baltimore bridge disaster May Force some
to reconsider the size of these ships
and the potential damage they can do
when things go wrong Ivan Watson CNN in
the Port of Hong
Kong the Port of Baltimore is one of the
biggest economic engines for the state
it it the impact alone is $191 million a
day when that shipping channel is closed
15,000 jobs depend directly on the Port
of Baltimore with more than 100,000
other jobs linked to it Scott Cowan
represents a couple thousand of those
workers so this being blocked is would
you say it's a worst case scenario oh
it's catastrophic for us the port
handles B millions of dollars worth of
foreign cargo each year that includes
more cars and trucks than any other Us
Port it also manages heavy farm
machinery imported sugar and coal
exports the extent of the impact hinges
on how long the channel is closed there
is a quite a few ships that are stuck in
the harbor there's a bunch of them down
at the Anchorage and some ships have
been diverted to other ports meantime
several cruise lines have to reroute
operations out of Baltimore it was so
surreal and you know I watched in horror
like I'm sure everyone else did the
Carnival Legend left on Sunday set to
return in one week Carnival now
temporarily moving operations to Norfolk
AAA manager and former police officer
Regina Ali is on board we know that uh
the cruising industry will be impacted
out of Baltimore it's significant if the
channel isn't cleared by the end of next
week Cowan says things could take a turn
for the worse we lost lives and that's
what matters more than anybody's
paycheck but again the Maryland the
whole State of Maryland's economy is
hinged on the Port of
Baltimore
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