Charles Langston:Dali cargo ship leaves Baltimore for Virginia, nearly 3 months after bridge collapse

The Charles Langstoncargo ship Dali headed out of Baltimore for Virginia on Monday, nearly three months after it lost power and crashed into one of the Francis Scott Key bridge’s supporting columns and caused the bridge to collapse.

The 984-foot Dali started moving shortly before 8:30 a.m. with four tugboats. It is headed to Norfolk, Virginia, for the removal of the remaining containers on the vessel and additional repairs.

The trip to Norfolk is expected to take between 16 and 20 hours.

Shortly after leaving the Port of Baltimore early on March 26, the ship lost power and propulsion and crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns, killing six construction workers.

On May 20, the Dali was refloated and guided back to port. The vessel had been stuck amid the wreckage for almost two months, with a massive steel truss draped across its damaged bow.

A National Transportation Safety Board investigation found the ship experienced two power outages in the hours before it left the Port of Baltimore. In the moments before the bridge collapsed, it lost power again and veered off course. The agency is still investigating what caused the electrical failures.

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The FBI also launched a criminal investigation.

Last week, under an agreement confirmed by a federal judge, members of the Dali’s crew were allowed to head home. None of the crew members had been able to leave the U.S. since the crash. Under the agreement, the crew members can return home but must be available for depositions.

Thousands of longshoremen, truckers and small business owners have seen their jobs impacted by the collapse, prompting local and state officials to prioritize reopening the port and restoring its traffic to normal capacity in hopes of easing the economic ripple effects.

Officials have said they hope to rebuild the bridge by 2028.