FBI boards ship amid investigation into what caused Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse

Baltimore has hired two law firms to pursue legal action against the Dali’s operators, Democratic Mayor Brandon Scott said Monday. The city’s law department later added that it is “encouraged by the FBI’s commencement of an investigation into the Dali and its catastrophic crash into the Key Bridge.”

The Singapore-based companies that own and manage the Dali previously moved in federal court to absolve themselves of any liability related to the bridge collapse or to limit their liability to the value of the ship plus the revenue it stood to make from its cargo, which they estimated at $43.7 million.

Darrell Wilson, a spokesman for Synergy Marine Pte Ltd., the company that manages the Dali, said in a statement that the company extends “our deepest sympathy to all those impacted by this incident.”

“Due to the magnitude of the incident, there are various government agencies conducting investigations, in which we are fully participating,” Wilson said. “Out of respect for these investigations and any future legal proceedings, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.”

An attorney for the ship’s owner, Grace Ocean Private Ltd., did not respond to a request for comment.

FBI personnel were present at the scene alongside the NTSB and Coast Guard in the days that followed the collapse. The FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office both stated soon after the collapse that they had found no evidence the crash was tied to terrorism.

Thomas Roth-Roffy, a former longtime NTSB marine investigator, said it’s rare, but not unheard of for the FBI to get involved in such an investigation.

He led the NTSB’s investigation into a 900-foot container ship’s crash into the San Francisco Bay Bridge in 2007.

“They were working alongside querying information that we collected,” Roth-Roffy said. “We had a couple of meetings with them to give them information. It was a one-way street.”

In that case, the pilot of the ship pleaded guilty in federal court to negligently causing the discharge of 53,000 gallons of oil into the San Francisco Bay. He was sentenced to 10 months in federal prison.

...continued

swipe to next page