US: Agreed to pay after Baltimore bridge collapse

In the spring, a ship collided with the Baltimore Bridge, which then collapsed. Six people died. After a lawsuit by the US government, the operator and owner of the cargo ship are now ready to pay up.

The owner and operator of a container ship responsible for the collapse of a major freeway bridge in Baltimore in March wants to pay a cool $100 million in restitution. With the agreement, the U.S. Department of Justice intends to drop a lawsuit with a similar claim. To do this, the judge must first approve the contract.

In late March, the container ship “Dally” collided with a support pillar of the over 2.5 kilometer long Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing the highway bridge to collapse. 6 workers were killed while repairing the bridge. The ship could not be operated due to power outage.

Ministry of Justice: Defects on board were deliberately ignored

In September 2024, the US Department of Justice sued two Singapore-based companies as the ship's owners and operators. Officials accused them of deliberately ignoring technical flaws in “Dally” – to save costs – which significantly increased the risk of power outages.

According to the ministry, they now want to pay almost 102 million dollars (about 94 million euros). In the lawsuit, it sought more than $103 million in damages.

At the same time, the Ministry of Justice emphasized that the costs of the reconstruction of the bridge were not included. It belongs to the state of Maryland, which is trying to recoup at least some of the costs in its own case.