It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Baltimore bridge crash: Sri Lanka unaware of ship carrying toxic wastes from US, say officials
The US National Transportation Safety Board is still ‘analysing the ship’s manifest to determine what was onboard’ in its other 4,644 containers
PTI Colombo Published 02.04.24 The Singapore-flagged container ship vessel Dali, which was mainly manned by an Indian crew, collided with the 2.6-km-long four-lane Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Patapsco River in Baltimore in the early hours of March 26.
Sri Lanka is not yet aware of the nature of hazardous materials on the cargo vessel that collided with a key Baltimore bridge last week as it was supposed to declare the contents of containers only 72 hours before the time of arrival into the Colombo Port, officials here said.
The Singapore-flagged container ship vessel Dali, which was mainly manned by an Indian crew, collided with the 2.6-km-long four-lane Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Patapsco River in Baltimore in the early hours of March 26. The 984-foot cargo ship was bound for Colombo, Sri Lanka. The ship was carrying 764 tonnes of hazardous materials as reported by the US media.
According to the information available, there are 57 containers with such toxic materials that can be categorised under the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code. The waste included mostly corrosives, flammables, miscellaneous hazardous materials, and Class-9 hazardous materials, including explosives & lithium-ion batteries – in 56 containers. So says the US National Transportation Safety Board, still ‘analysing the ship’s manifest to determine what was onboard’ in its other 4,644 containers, Daily Mirror Online quoted the official as saying.
"Prior to Baltimore, Dali called at New York and Norfolk, Virginia, which has the world’s largest naval base. Colombo was to be its next scheduled call, going around South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, taking 27 days, scheduled to land just after our New Year," the official said.
Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) Chairman Keith Bernard said the ship should declare the contents of containers only 72 hours before the time of arrival at the Colombo Port.
“The ship is supposed to arrive here on April 21, 2024. It means they are supposed to inform us by April 17 or so. There is enough time. If there are containers with hazardous items as declared by them, we will isolate such containers in accordance with protocols. As a major transhipment hub, we have a procedure set in place to deal with such containers. Most likely, these containers are meant for transhipment,” he said.
Asked about the procedure if the containers are meant to be allowed into the country, he said the clearance of the Defence Ministry and others would be sought.
However, Deputy Director of the Central Environment Authority (CEA) Ajith Wijesundara said it is not yet clear whether the ship was carrying containers with hazardous wastes or toxic substances. According to the Basel Convention, he said such wastes would not be allowed into the country. He added that toxic substances are imported as raw materials and guidelines are applied.
The collapse of the bridge has effectively shut down operations at Baltimore’s port, affecting about 8,000 jobs and about USD 2 million in daily wages for those workers, US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said last week.
Baltimore ship crew worried about ‘world’s perception’ days after Key Bridge collapse
Singapore-flagged ship Dali stuck under bridge with mostly Indian crew since last Tuesday
The 20 Indian and one Sri Lankan sailors were in good health, including a member who suffered minor injuries, according to officials
The “rattled” sailors had adequate food on board but were keeping quiet about their situation amid an ongoing investigation, said Joshua Messick, the executive director of the non-profit Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center.
“They’re not saying much at all to anyone who has been in touch with them,” Mr Messick told the BBC.
“They didn’t have WiFi until Saturday and they didn’t really know what the perception of the rest of the world was. They weren’t sure if they were being blamed, or demonised. They just didn’t know what to expect.
“They are also in a very sensitive situation. What they can say can reflect on the company. I would imagine that they’ve been advised to keep a low-profile for the time being,” he added.
There has been very little information provided by the authorities on the condition of the crew members or their backgrounds.
The sailors have been praised for raising a mayday alarm moments before the crash, which allowed the authorities to stop cars from entering the bridge from both sides, saving countless lives. However, they also became the target of racist jokes on the internet, featuring in cartoons stereotyping Indians.
Wreckage from collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge rests on cargo ship Dali
(Getty Images)
Authorities in the US said there was no immediate plan to disembark the crew members as workers raced against time to clean up the bridge’s debris from the Patapsco River.The sailors would likely stay on board until the ongoing investigation was completed.
"The crew members were busy with their normal duties on the ship and assisting the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and Coast Guard investigators," a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Pte Ltd, the owner of the vessel, told news agency PTI.
"At this time, we do not know how long the investigation process will take and until that process is complete, the crew will remain on board."
The Synergy Group, which manages the vessel, said in a statement that the NTSB – an independent US government investigative agency – boarded the vessel on Wednesday and collected documents, voyage data recorder extracts, and began interviewing the sailors as part of their investigation.
The Port of Baltimore opened a temporary channel on Monday, freeing some tugs and barges that had been trapped by the bridge collapse.
One of last people to cross Baltimore bridge describes harrowing drive
A Maryland man said he considers himself “lucky” while reflecting on being one of the last drivers to go across the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore moments before it was struck by a cargo ship and sent crumbling into the Patapsco River.
Larry DeSantis was making his daily commute last Tuesday to his second job at Herman’s Bakery in the Baltimore area when he crossed the bridge shortly before 1:30 a.m. He told The Baltimore Banner he remembered slowing down to look out for highway workers doing construction on the bridge and now realizes he witnessed some of the workers’ final moments before they presumably died in the collapse.
He did not notice a ship coming toward the bridge or the black smoke coming out of it and later told CNN the only indication of something being wrong was the lack of vehicles on the roadway, even at that time of day.
“I really didn’t even see the ship at all. I just focused on what was right in front of me,” he told CNN. “There was one other vehicle behind me. It was a tractor, but he didn’t have a trailer because I actually got in front of him right as we started to go over the bridge.”
DeSantis was off the bridge by around 1:27 a.m., and at 1:29 a.m., a 984-foot cargo ship, named the Dali, crashed into bridge, causing it to collapse. Officials said the Dali was attempting to leave Baltimore Harbor on its way to Sri Lanka when it lost power.
The ship was able to issue a last-minute mayday call to allow police to stop traffic moments before the crash, but the eight individuals working on the bridge were not able to get off and fell into the water. Two of the workers were rescued and survived, and divers found two bodies in a submerged truck. The four others are presumed dead.
“I mean, they were doing their job, and they lost their lives. It’s hard; I drove right by them; I saw all of them, just a minute before they probably died,” he said.
DeSantis told The Baltimore Banner, which broke the story, he did not hear the noise from the crash because he had a radio channel playing.
“I didn’t even know anything was going on, but it was just really eerie when I got off of the bridge and there was nothing [behind me],” DeSantis said. “Because with Amazon there, I’ll see 20 Amazon trucks every morning. I don’t care what day of the week it is. Nothing. There was absolutely nothing.”
Minutes later, he received a call from a co-worker to make sure he was OK and later from a Maryland Transportation Authority Police detective.
“I think about it; I might not be here now if I had been just a little bit later,” he said. “Just a minute would’ve changed everything. It’s scary, you know.”
DeSantis said he has gone to work each day since the collapse, though his commute now takes closer to an hour than 20 minutes, like before.
“I’ve been very tired this week because of the amount of hours I’ve been working, but it makes you think a lot, it really does,” he told CNN. “I just can’t believe it happened. I consider myself very lucky.”
A lifelong resident of the Baltimore area, DeSantis said it is “hard to believe” the landmark bridge is gone and only remembers one other time in his life when the skyline did not have the bridge — when it was being built.
The bridge collapse has closed the Port of Baltimore, a major shipping hub along the East Coast that supports more than 15,000 direct jobs and more than 139,000 indirect jobs, Axios reported last week.
The U.S. Coast Guard announced Monday it is expected to open an auxiliary channel for commercially essential vessels near the site of the wreckage.
“This will mark an important first step along the road to reopening the port of Baltimore,” Coast Guard Capt. David O’Connell, the federal on-scene coordinator for the joint command response, said in a statement. “By opening this alternate route, we will support the flow of marine traffic into Baltimore.”
Crews began removing the first piece of wreckage from the water over the weekend, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said.
Moore, along with other state and federal officials said the port’s closure will not only impact Maryland’s local economy but will also have ripple effects on a national level. No definitive timeline has been determined for when the port could reopen as the salvage and rebuilding process is expected to be extensive.
ST Explains: Baltimore bridge collapse
What does it mean for a ship to be S’pore-flagged, and why is S’pore involved in the probe?
The Dali container ship crashed into one of the pillars of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on March 26.
SINGAPORE - A container ship that crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on March 26 was sailing under the Singapore flag, spawning questions about what this means, why Singapore’s authorities are involved in the investigation and the parties that could be held liable.
The Straits Times looks at what it means for a ship to be registered in Singapore and why investigators here have been sent to the United States to aid in the probe.
1. What does it mean when a ship is Singapore-flagged?
Under international maritime law, all merchant ships participating in international trade need to be registered in a country of the shipowner’s choosing, called the flag state. Each ship is bound by the laws of the flag state that it is registered in.
The Singapore Registry of Ships, which was established in 1966, is responsible for overseeing Singapore-flagged ships and ensuring that these vessels and their owners meet local and international regulations covering areas such as crew safety and environmental protection.
Singapore’s ship registry, which was the fifth-largest in the world in 2023 according to Lloyd’s List Intelligence, comes under the purview of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA).
The moment the ship crashed into the bridge. STRAITS TIMES GRAPHICS 2. How many vessels fly the Singapore flag, and what is needed for a ship to get on the registry?
As at January, there were about 4,000 vessels being administered under the Singapore Registry of Ships, representing a total internal ship capacity of more than 100 million gross tons.
Except for certain vessels like fishing boats, all types of ships, including offshore vessels such as oil rigs, can be registered with the Singapore ship registry so long as they comply with the relevant international standards.
According to MPA’s website, vessels that are less than 17 years old and meet these requirements are normally accepted for registration.
MPA has said that the Singapore flag has become a flag of choice for many shipowners and operators due to the quality of the ship registry here.
Other advantages of flying the Singapore flag that have been cited within the shipping industry include the ease of incorporating a Singapore company, as well as tax exemptions and various incentive schemes. 3. Who can be registered as owners of Singapore-flagged ships?
Only Singapore citizens, permanent residents or companies incorporated in Singapore may be registered as owners of Singapore-flagged ships. These companies can be locally or foreign-owned.
For a company to be registered as the owner of a Singapore-flagged ship, it must have a minimum paid-up capital of $50,000. But this requirement may be waived depending on the number of ships being registered and their aggregated tonnage.
The owner of every Singapore ship must appoint a manager whose residence is in Singapore, according to MPA. The ship manager may be an officer of the owning company or of a management company, and he is responsible for all matters related to ship registration and crew manning, as well as safety at sea.
In the case of the Dali container ship – which rammed into one of the pillars of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, in the United States, resulting in six people presumed dead – the shipowner is Singapore-based firm Grace Ocean.
The ship’s appointed manager is Synergy Marine Group, a Singapore-headquartered company, which hired and manages the crew aboard the Dali.
Synergy, which manages 668 vessels, oversees various aspects of operations for shipowners, such as docking procedures and risk management.
4. Why is MPA involved in the probe, and what are its responsibilities in terms of maritime safety?
Mr Moses Lin, partner and head of shipping at law firm Shook Lin & Bok, said MPA ensures Singapore-flagged ships have complied with relevant safety regulations.
It also ensures that these ships have undergone the regular inspections and certifications needed for a vessel’s structural integrity, seaworthiness and safety.
But flag states, he noted, do not have direct responsibility for the day-to-day operational safety of vessels.
In an accident like the Baltimore one, just because the ship involved is registered in Singapore does not mean the Republic is responsible, said Associate Professor Goh Puay Guan of the National University of Singapore Business School and Centre for Maritime Studies.
“Safety checks and compliance checks would likely have been conducted regularly, and as long as these are done in accordance with procedure, the regulatory bodies would have carried out their responsibilities,” he added.
Under international law, flag states must conduct an inquiry into any marine casualty or incident involving a ship flying its flag that causes loss of life or serious injury to nationals from another state, or causes serious damage to ships or installations of another state.
The flag state must also cooperate in any inquiries held by the other state into such incidents.
In the case of a marine casualty or incident, owners and masters of Singapore-registered ships must first take urgent steps on the ground to prevent further deterioration of the situation.
Once that is done, they should alert MPA to the incident immediately or within two hours of the incident at the latest. A more detailed report should then be submitted within 24 hours of the occurrence.
5. Why are investigators from Singapore’s Transport Safety Investigation Bureau (TSIB) being sent to Baltimore?
TSIB – a department of Singapore’s Ministry of Transport (MOT) – is the authority responsible for investigating air, marine and rail accidents and incidents here.
When it was set up in 2016, it took over the task of carrying out independent safety investigations into marine accidents from MPA.
The bureau will investigate incidents that occur in Singapore with a “very serious marine casualty”, regardless of the country the ship is registered in, or those that involve a Singapore-registered ship when it is overseas.
These “very serious” incidents involve the total loss of a ship, a death, or severe damage to the environment. TSIB may also investigate marine casualties and marine incidents where safety lessons can be drawn.
MOT has said TSIB’s investigations are aimed at preventing accidents and incidents, and not to ascribe blame or liability. Still, any investigation being conducted by the bureau does not prevent other entities, such as MPA, from conducting their own probes.
The shipowner of the Dali container vessel is Singapore-based firm Grace Ocean.
PHOTO: REUTERS 6. Which party bears the liabilities in such accidents?
As early investigations into the Baltimore bridge collapse are under way, it is difficult to ascertain which party would be liable for damages, legal experts told ST.
Major parties that might be potentially responsible include the shipowner, operator, charterer, captain or master of the vessel, said Shook Lin & Bok’s Mr Lin.
The Dali container ship was chartered by Danish shipping giant Maersk at the time.
Losses would likely include damage to the bridge, business and service disruptions, and the loss of lives, said lawyer Kevin Chan.
Depending on the outcome of the investigation, Grace Ocean can seek compensation from relevant parties, lawyers said.
“If it was an engine failure which caused the vessel to lose power and collide with the bridge, it might be the operator or the engineer who was responsible,” said Mr Mathiew Rajoo, partner at DennisMathiew law firm.
The company that hired the parties responsible may then be liable, he added.
Port pilots may also be held liable in certain situations.
“Pilots typically board ships in local waters to direct the ship as these waters could be small and narrow or have conditions that the ship’s captain may not be aware of. “So, in certain instances, it could also be the pilot’s fault for failing to direct the vessel correctly,” Mr Lin said.
Grace Ocean may shield itself from damages by filing for a limitation-of-liability action under maritime law, said Mr Mathiew. The liability will be based on the tonnage of the vessel.
But the company, he said, will not be entitled to the limitation if it is established that the loss resulted from a deliberate act or omission.
The shipowner would also likely be covered by insurance, said lawyers.
The ship has been insured by the Britannia Protection and Indemnity Club, a mutual insurance association owned by shipping companies, since 2014.
According to its website, the insurance group covers areas such as loss of life, liability to cargo and collision liability.
But there may be instances where shipowners could be denied their claims, depending on the terms of the policy, said Mr Chan.
“Possible situations where coverage may be excluded would include the vessel’s failure to maintain its class (a certification of its technical standards) required under the policy, or if the collision was intentional or a result of wilful misconduct by the shipowner,” he said.Additional reporting by Grace Leong
Saturday, April 06, 2024
Baltimore Port Shutdown Sends Shockwaves Through Auto Industry
Baltimore port closure disrupted auto supply chain, potentially leading to higher car prices.
Logistical challenges and rerouting of shipments add to the complexity and cost of importing vehicles.
Consumers may feel the impact of increased dealership sticker prices due to additional expenses incurred by automakers.
Month-over-month, the Automotive MMI (Monthly Metals Index) exhibited little movement. The index trended sideways, only moving up a slight 0.28%. However, recent events continue to raise questions about the future of the industry, especially where automotive imports are concerned.
Despite the index itself not witnessing much movement, individual components of the index saw much more price movement than last month. This includes palladium, copper, and shredded scrap steel. Despite this, firm sideways movements from other components like lead and hot dipped galvanized steel kept the overall index flat. However, the real talk of the town is the shutdown of the Baltimore port in the aftermath of the Francis Scott Key bridge collapse. With Baltimore being one of the top ports in the U.S. or automobile imports, how will this impact the U.S. automotive industry?
How the Baltimore Port Shutdown Could Affect U.S. Automotive Imports
The recent collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore has rocked the U.S. car sector. Experts worry that car prices may increase due to supply chain disruptions brought on by the shutdown of this crucial port.
As a vital component in the U.S. car supply chain, the Port of Baltimore is one of the top sites for automotive imports, especially from Asia and Europe. Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars.com, recently commented, “There are a number of considerations, but two important ones are the duration of the port’s shutdown and the capacity of other ports. The degree to which a particular brand depends on Baltimore for supply chain and vehicle shipping is one of the additional considerations.”
A Logistics Nightmare for Automotive Imports
Automobile makers are rushing to find alternate routes for their automobiles due to the port’s partial paralysis. For this reason, experts anticipate a cascading impact, with heightened activity in other ports on the East Coast, such as Philadelphia, Virginia, and New York.
The logistical difficulties involved in rerouting supplies continue to exacerbate the problem. Certain parts of the port are still open, but those that handle European imports (like BMW and Volkswagen), could see massive slowdowns.
According to the University at Buffalo, the situation calls for extra transportation like trucks and trains to help circumvent the impact. However, this may raise expenses and put more pressure on the already burdened transportation industry.
Consumers Expected to Feel the Blow the Most
All of these factors mean that car could climb for consumers. Dealership sticker prices may rise due to additional expenses incurred from rerouting shipments, delays and shortages of available new cars. Although the entire effect on prices remains unknown, consumers who are already concerned about inflation and potential supply chain problems should take note.
For many, the collapse of the bridge is a sobering reminder of how interwoven the world economy remains. A single breakdown in Baltimore’s infrastructure could cause far-reaching effects for dealerships, customers, and the nation’s overall logistics industry. The car sector is left waiting for the vital port of Baltimore to reopen in order to ensure a seamless transatlantic vehicle flow as the crisis plays out.
USACE Wants to Open a Deep-Draft Channel to Baltimore by End of April
The "limited access channel" would have enough water depth for ro/ros
After a week of careful analysis and surveying, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has determined a working timeline for reopening a channel for merchant ships in and out of the port's inner harbor. Response officials have been careful not to predict how long the reopening might take, given the exceptional complexity of the work and the need to make a thorough assessment of the wreckage, but USACE now believes that it will be possible to clear a channel for ro/ro traffic by the end of April.
The plan calls for clearing out a 35-foot by 280-foot channel through the wreckage of the Key Bridge within four weeks. This "limited access channel" is still short of the ultimate goal - reopening the 50-foot deep draft shipping channel used by boxships - but it would be big enough to support ro/ro and container-on-barge traffic, one vessel at a time.
Up until the collapse of the bridge, Baltimore was the busiest ro/ro port in the country; while some of that traffic has been diverted to the Tradepoint Atlantic terminal, located just on the seaward side of the bridge, other ro/ro cargo will have to be offloaded at other East Coast ports. This adds cost and complexity for shipments of cars, farm equipment and construction machinery, and it also reduces port activity - and the longshore wages that go along with it.
“These are ambitious timelines that may still be impacted by significant adverse weather conditions or changes in the complexity of the wreckage,” said Lt. Gen. Scott A. Spellmon, USACE commanding general. “We are working quickly and safely to clear the channel and restore full service at this port that is so vital to the nation."
Temporary channels past the Key Bridge (Courtesy USCG)
To date, the unified command and contracted salvors have opened up a channel to the north of the main span and a channel to the south. These temporary access lanes are 11 and 14 feet deep (respectively), which is enough for shallow barges and towboats but far from adequate for oceangoing vessels.
The complexity of the effort to open the main channel should not be underestimated, officials have repeatedly cautioned. Divers have to work in near-zero visibility on the bottom to survey the wreckage, and a tangled mat of girders from the central span has "pancaked" into the mud. Cutting this wreckage may be impossible to do safely, so the unified command is bringing in a grab bucket to pull it up piecemeal, a USACE official said Thursday.
Saturday, May 02, 2020
ACLU Files Historic Lawsuit to Stop Surveillance Planes Above Baltimore
"If this wide-area aerial surveillance program is allowed to move forward, we can expect mass surveillance to spread in cities across the country."
(TMU) — The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a lawsuit in an attempt to stop the city of Baltimore from rolling out a disturbing aerial surveillance program.
The ACLU filed the suit on behalf of a group of Baltimore community activists who have raised concerns about the introduction of a controversial technology known as wide-area aerial surveillance which involves stationing an aircraft equipped with ultra-high-resolution cameras over a city to track all visible pedestrians and vehicles within that city.
“Imagine a day in the future when everyone, from the moment they step outside their home, has to live with the knowledge that their every movement is being recorded by powerful cameras circling in the skies above. Not just where they work, shop, eat and drink, and whose homes they visit, but details about their political, religious, sexual, and medical lives—all captured and stored in databases without a warrant and available to law enforcement upon request.
That day is here.”
The ACLU states in the lawsuit that the program would violate the plaintiffs’ constitutional rights to freedom of association and privacy. The rights group argues that government tracking of everyone in a city would violate the Constitution’s ban on “general warrants,” which authorize searches under broad and vague criteria. The ACLU states that the systems violates the Fourth Amendment prohibition against “unreasonable searches and seizures” and the First Amendment’s guarantees of the right to assemble. The ACLU also notes that the Supreme Court has repeatedly made clear that the courts’ role when interpreting new technology is to protect the “degree of privacy against government that existed when the Fourth Amendment was adopted.”
The wide-area aerial surveillance technology—originally used for monitoring citizens in Iraq and Afghanistan in a program called “Gorgon Stare”—is yet another example of tools from the U.S.-led Global War on Terror making their way to American cities. Coincidentally, the company behind the technology, Persistent Surveillance Systems (PSS), was founded by Ross McNutt, a former colonel in the U.S. Air Force who worked on similar programs in the military. McNutt and PSS are now preparing to roll out the same technology in the skies above Baltimore.
The company has been promoting the technology to local police for years. However, the Baltimore police department is the first to embrace the idea.
The ACLU warns that if McNutt and PSS succeed, the flood gates will be opened and additional companies would likely join the market. This would likely lead to a roll out of even more powerful technologies, including automated AI analysis, multi-spectral imaging, and night vision capabilities, not to mention much higher camera resolutions. The lawsuit also warns that the monitoring program would likely put activists, protesters, and dissidents of all kinds under surveillance.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit include Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle, a grassroots think-tank that advances the public policy interests of Black people in Baltimore, Erricka Bridgeford, co-founder of the Baltimore Ceasefire 365 project to end gun violence in the city, and Kevin James, a community organizer and hip-hop musician.
This is not the first time surveillance planes have caused controversy in Baltimore. In November 2015, internal documents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) revealed the agency flew surveillance planes over Baltimore and Ferguson, MO during highly-publicized protests. The planes also operated thermal imaging equipment. The documents, obtained by the ACLU via Freedom of Information Act requests, outline how the bureau is using planes equipped with infrared and night vision cameras.
The release of the documents came after FBI Director James Comey confirmed to Congress that the agency flew surveillance aircraft over Ferguson and Baltimore during the protests following the police killings of both Michael Brown and Freddie Gray.
According to the FBI’s own flight logs, the agency flew 10 surveillance flights over Baltimore from April 29 to May 3, 2015, comprising a total of 36.2 flight hours. The flights took place mostly at night and typically involved a Baltimore Police Department representative and an FBI agent. Evidence logs show that at least half the flights conducted video surveillance, and the FBI is apparently holding on to copies of these videos. Still other flights conducted “electronic surveillance,” but specific details were redacted.
Additionally, in September 2015, Anti Media reported on the existence of a fleet of surveillance aircraft operated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) that has been flying over various locations within the United States, as well as foreign destinations.
The ACLU’s lawsuit is an attempt to stop the expansion of these types of programs over American cities. If they fail and there is no public push back, Americans will soon have to contend with the reality that surveillance drones are watching their every move.
The container ship that caused the deadly collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge is on its way back to port nearly two months after the disaster.
Dali, a 300 meter (984ft) cargo ship, was refloated at high tide Monday and began slowly moving back to port at a cautious speed of 1mph, guided by several tugboats.
The ship had been grounded at the collapse site for seven weeks after it lost power and crashed into one of the bridge's supporting columns on March 26, killing six construction workers and halting most maritime traffic through Baltimore's busy port.
The 21-strong crew have remained on board the ship since the disaster amid investigations by the National Transportation Safety Board and the FBI.
The ship appeared to start moving shortly after 6am as crews began maneuvering it out of the wreckage. It started and stopped a few times before slowly backing away from the collapse site. Crews work to move the cargo ship Dali in Baltimore, Monday, May 20, 2024 Crews work to refloat the Dali in preparation to move the cargo ship at high tide in Baltimore, Monday, May 20, 2024
The ship's crew members haven't been allowed to leave the vessel since the disaster. Officials said they've been busy maintaining the ship and assisting investigators. Of the crew members, 20 are from India and one is Sri Lankan.
Officials have said they will be able to disembark once the Dali is docked in Baltimore.
With the hulking cargo ship removed from the mouth of Baltimore's harbor, a newly opened void appeared in the city's skyline.
The altered waterscape also highlighted the progress made on the cleanup effort as crews have already removed hundreds of tons of mangled steel from the collapse site.
Officials said the Dali would move at about 1mph on the roughly 2.5-mile trip back to port, a fraction of the speed it was traveling when it lost power and brought down the bridge.
Shocking moment cargo ship loses power and smashes into MD bridge
Pieces of the bridge's steel trusses protruded from the ship's bow, which remained covered in mangled concrete from the collapsed roadway.
Officials have said the Dali will likely remain in the port for a several weeks and undergo temporary repairs before being moved to a shipyard for more substantial repairs.
Crews began preparing the ship to be refloated about 18 hours before it started moving. That process included releasing anchors and pumping out over 1 million gallons of water that were keeping the ship grounded and stable during complex cleanup operations.
Crews conducted a controlled demolition on May 13 to break down the largest remaining span of the collapsed bridge, which was draped across the Dali's bow.
Dive teams also completed inspections of the site to confirm there were no obstructions that would hinder the voyage.
Moment Baltimore's Key bridge is blown up in controlled explosion
Tugboats escort the container ship Dali after it was refloated in Baltimore, Monday, May 20, 2024
The Dali experienced two electrical blackouts within about 10 hours before leaving the Port of Baltimore on its way to Sri Lanka on March 26
The Dali experienced two electrical blackouts within about 10 hours before leaving the Port of Baltimore on its way to Sri Lanka, according to a preliminary report released last week by the National Transportation Safety Board.
The ship experienced two more blackouts as it was approaching the Key Bridge. Those failures caused it to lose propulsion and veer off course at the exact wrong time.
The FBI also launched a criminal investigation into the circumstances leading up to the crash.
The bodies of six construction workers have been recovered from the underwater wreckage in recent weeks. All the victims were Latino immigrants who came to the U.S. for job opportunities. They were filling potholes on an overnight shift when the bridge was destroyed.
Officials plan to reopen the port's 50-foot (15-meter) deep draft channel by the end of May. Until then, crews have established a temporary channel that's slightly shallower.
Saturday, May 18, 2024
Video: Wreckage Removal as Dali Refloating Awaits Dive Survey
The removal of the containership Dali from Baltimore’s Fort McHenry Federal Channel remains in flux according to a report in the Baltimore Sun. The Unified Command reports they are awaiting the results of a dive survey but in the meantime, wreckage clearance is continuing and a large part of the port is reopened to traffic.
The goal had been to refloat and move the containership early in the week after the controlled demolition of the wreckage sitting against the bow was completed. First, the demolition was delayed for 48 hours till Monday due to weather concerns. Now they are waiting for a survey of the wreckage and the underwater areas around the vessel after the demolition to plan the refloating. Dredging Contractors of America CEO Bill Doyle also previously said they had dredges standing by to assist as needed in the refloating process.
The Unified Command in its update on Thursday said it had evaluated sonar and lidar imagery from around the vessel. They were awaiting the dive survey before proceeding with the refloating plan. The diving was proceeding slowly due to the dangers and conditions in the Patapsco River.
“To permit safe diver access to the Patapsco riverbed next to the vessel, Unified Command cranes must first remove submerged and unstable wreckage from the controlled demolition,” they reported. “Safety also dictates the securing or removal of severely damaged containers and overhanging wreckage from the initial bridge collapse onto the deck of the M/V Dali.”
The target for the refloating is currently about a week behind the previous schedule. Officials said during the hearings this week in Washington D.C. that they expected to refloat the ship early next week. It will then be moved to the Seagirt Terminal in Baltimore. It will undergo further inspections, including a visit by the NTSB, and additional debris will be removed. The U.S. Coast Guard said they expect the vessel to remain at the terminal for four to six weeks and then likely shift to a shipyard for repairs.
Videos released by the command show new images aboard the vessel and the extent of the damage. It also shows the ongoing efforts to remove wreckage from the ship and the surrounding area. The Unified Command also highlights that clearance is ongoing in the central part of the Fort McHenry Channel.
Currently, nearly half the 700-foot-wide channel has been cleared to an operational depth of 48 feet. While access remains restricted, this means the port has been able to expand operations. To date, officials report more than 365 vessels have transited the four Port of Baltimore temporary alternate channels.
The two large bulkers that had remained trapped have both departed the port while inbound traffic is resuming. Yesterday, Wallenius Wilhelmsen’s first car carrier, Tannhauser (24,155 dwt) returned to the port for an overnight operation to offload. She departed today, May 17.
Port officials also highlighted the first RoRo cargo ship back into Baltimore. ACL’s Atlantic Sun (55,547 dwt) made her port call. She departed on May 15 for Halifax. Earlier in the week, the port also received another containership, MSC Shanghai V (66,685 dwt / 4,800 TEU). She departed on May 15 for Savannah. Maersk also announced that it is resuming bookings for Baltimore.
Next up is the return of the cruise ships. Today, Carnival Cruise Line confirmed its ship Carnival Pride (88,500 gross tons) will make her final departure from Norfolk this weekend and she will return to Baltimore for the first time on May 26. The ship’s next sailing, a 14-day cruise to Greenland, is scheduled to sail on May 26 and is expected to operate round-trip from Baltimore. Royal Caribbean International’s Vision of the Seas (78,491 GT) is scheduled to make a five-night round trip from Baltimore on May 26 to Bermuda.
The full restoration of the 50-foot channel remains dependent on the removal of the Dali. Officials remain confident that they will have the channel fully operational by the end of the month.
Congressman Pushes NTSB to Check Dali's Systems for Cyber Threats
In a hearing of the House Transportation Committee on Thursday, Congressman Brandon Williams (R-NY) pressed the National Transportation Safety Board to tear down and examine every component of the boxship Dali's electrical switchboards for signs of malicious code.
Working with Hyundai, which built the Dali, NTSB's investigators have determined that the ship lost electrical power because two main breakers tripped. Her generators kept running, but were no longer connected to the electrical bus that powers all critical systems. Soon after the crew restored the connection, two other breakers tripped. Without electrical power, the main engine's lube and coolant pumps turned off, and the engine automatically shut down to protect itself from imminent damage. This left Dali without propulsion as she approached - and then hit - Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge. The resulting bridge collapse shut the port of Baltimore for weeks, and the roadway will not be restored for years; it is on track to become the most expensive maritime casualty claim on record.
These important findings rule out many other possible explanations for the casualty, like fuel contamination. However, the investigators still have to figure out why the breakers tripped at such an unlucky moment, and the answer is not immediately clear.
In questioning before the House Transportation Committee, Rep. Williams asked NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy just how deep her team planned to delve into the breaker system, and hinted at possible cybersecurity risks. Maritime cyber experts, the U.S. Coast Guard and the FBI have assessed that the odds of a cyberattack aboard Dali are low, and Homendy said that the investigation has seen no signs to suggest that there was any cyber intrusion. Rep. Williams - a former U.S. Navy nuclear submarine officer - urged Homendy to look deeper.
In a pointed exchange, Williams questioned whether NTSB has the capability to do a thorough component by component analysis of the entire switchboard control system, down to the most basic building blocks of its code. He raised the possibility that a sophisticated threat actor could target small, miniature computer assemblies - embedded systems - that control simple functions within the electrical system.
"There's a lot of concern about embedded systems, embedded into what is called a real-time operating system or inside the control logic or the control elements," he said. "That would require an enormous amount of forensics to evaluate . . . is that kind of investigation underway?"
Homendy said that her investigative team has 400 years of collective experience and will follow the evidence wherever it leads, adding that a cybersecurity threat would be in the jurisdiction of the Department of Justice. She noted that NTSB is required to notify law enforcement if it uncovers a possible crime or a cyberattack. "We will follow the evidence and anything security-wise, if we find anything, we will turn it over [to the FBI] immediately," she said.
The FBI has launched a parallel, court-authorized criminal investigation, and its agents boarded the vessel on April 15 to search it. The U.S. Coast Guard has also opened a Marine Board of Investigation - its most serious form of inquiry - to examine the causes of the casualty.
Sunday, February 09, 2020
US art museum to only buy works by women in 2020, as it starts to address gender imbalance in its collection
Like most museums, the Baltimore Museum of Art has hardly any works by women. It will buy only women’s art for a year, and showcase the works it has already
Critics say a lot more needs doing, and director agrees it’s only a small step, but hopes Baltimore’s example reverberates through the art museum world
An exhibit at the Baltimore Museum of Art in Baltimore, Maryland, the US. The museum will buy only works by women for a year as a step to addressing a huge gender imbalance in the artists its collection represents. Photo: AFP via Getty Images
An American museum has come up with a way to boost women’s participation in the arts: this year it will only acquire works by females. The Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA), in the state of Maryland, is best known for housing the largest public collection of Matisse works anywhere in the world. Late last year it attracted major press attention with word that in 2020 it would only purchase works by women, drawing both praise and scepticism.
“I think it’s a radical and timely decision in 2020, to take the bull by the horns and do this,” says the museum’s director, Christopher Bedford.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the adoption of the 19th Amendment to the US constitution, which gave women the right to vote. It also gave the museum pause to do some soul-searching: of its 95,000 works, only four per cent are by women artists, says Bedford. The exterior of the Baltimore Museum of Art in Maryland. Photo: AFP via Getty Images
“We’re an institution largely built by women leaders,” he says. The museum’s first director was a woman. And it is largely thanks to two women – the Cone sisters – and their friendship with Henri Matisse that the museum boasts such a rich collection of works by the French artist.
So the museum will spend US$2.5 million this year on works by women. It will also reorganise several rooms to showcase the work of women and offer 20-odd exhibits of works by female artists. It will, however, continue to accept donations of art done by men. Visitors look at paintings by female artist Lynette Yiadom-Boakye at the Baltimore Museum of Art. Photo: AFP via Getty Images A woman walks by a sculpture at the Baltimore Museum of Art. Photo: AFP via Getty Images
The BMA is hardly alone in having such a disproportionate amount of art by men. The fame of artists such as Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun,
Frida Kahlo and Louise Bourgeois is an exception to the rule. A study published last year by the scientific journal Plos-One found that in 18 major American museums, 87 per cent of the artists whose works were on show were men.
And from 2008 to 2018, of 260,470 works acquired by 26 big museums, only 11 per cent were by women, according to a study by the company Artnet and the podcast: “In Other Words.”
This is the fruit of centuries of discrimination that can be either intentional or not, said Bedford. “And unless you call out that habit and consciously find a way to work against it, then you will never have a properly equitable museum,” he says. Baltimore Museum of Art director Christopher Bedford. Photo: AFP via Getty Images
While the museum’s initiative has been welcomed by many as a good first step, not everyone is sold on it. Teri Henderson, a curator based in Baltimore, questions the museum’s use of the word “radical” to describe its decision to acquire only art by women for a year.
“I have observed that organisations and institutions use the word ‘radical’ as a sort of buzzword without actually implementing any programming or effort that is truly radical,” Henderson says.
“I do know that one year of collecting attached to this interesting choice of word cannot truly rectify the imbalance in the art world and in museums. I do think this year of collecting art by only women could possibly be the first step, but it is a tiny step.” A visitor checks out an artwork by Baltimore female artist Shinique Smith. Photo: AFP via Getty Images
Bedford agreed that this plan is just a start.
“I’m also hoping that our decision has a reverberating effect across the museum field,” he says. “And that’s a consciousness-raising act as well. It’s supposed to precipitate an endless action in that direction,” he added, promising also to publish the results of this female-only programme in a year.
Henderson said that “many gigantic steps” are needed to rectify the male-female imbalance in the art world. A sculpture at the Baltimore Museum of Art. Photo: AFP via Getty Images
She says that, for instance, museums need to invest in living artists that live and work in the surrounding areas if they really want to reflect the richness and diversity of today’s art.
“Stop buying art that isn’t good just because it’s made by well-known white artists. Start taking risks and investing in black and brown living artists,” she says.
Donna Drew Sawyer, chief executive officer of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and The Arts, had several questions about the initiative, including the fact that it drew so much attention.
“Why did a male’s call to action seem to resonate so loudly in this instance when women are the subject and have been calling for the same action forever?” Sawyer wrote in the magazine BmoreArt.
Temporary channels past the Key Bridge (Courtesy USCG)
