Maryland governor says continued closure of port is a blow to U.S. economy (File)
Washington:
U.S. authorities responsible for the Baltimore bridge collapse told AFP on Monday they planned to open two small temporary channels to allow ships to access the accident site.
The waterways will initially be open only to vessels participating in the Francis Scott Key Bridge cleanup operation and will not be large enough to allow cargo and container ships to pass.
The first channel is scheduled to open on Monday, U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Kimberly Reeves told AFP, adding that the second channel would open later.
Temporary access is being built and the arduous task of clearing the port’s steel structure continues. Last Tuesday, an out-of-control ship crashed into the port, killing six people and destroying the port’s steel structure in seconds.
Authorities hope that dismantling the bridge – cutting it into smaller sections and lifting it out – will help rescuers find the bodies of all the victims and reopen the vital waterway.
Public use prohibited
“The channel is being opened to personnel involved in the response,” U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Carmen Carver told AFP on Monday.
She added: “We have no plans at the moment to open it up for public use, but if ships are involved in actual operations you may see ships passing through.”
The first temporary channel will have a depth of 11 feet, a horizontal clearance of 264 feet, and a vertical clearance of 96 feet, a multi-agency task force overseeing the operation said in a statement.
Carver told AFP the temporary channel was “not big enough to allow any containers or cargo ships to pass through”, adding: “They are working on a plan to slowly open it up to more and more people.”
The Port of Baltimore is a key hub for the automotive industry, handling nearly 850,000 cars and light trucks last year, more than any other U.S. port, according to Maryland state data.
It also ranks first in agricultural and construction machinery and sugar and gypsum imports and second in coal exports.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore told MSNBC on Sunday that the port’s continued closure has taken a toll on the U.S. economy.
“This is affecting people all over the country,” he said.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
