The cargo ship named Dali caused the recent collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge within seconds of colliding into one of the bridge’s support beams.
The collision and subsequent collapse in Baltimore are now being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board, but officials have initially said the deadly catastrophe appears to be the result of an accident after the Dali lost power before striking the bridge. In the now viral videos of the collapse, it’s hard not to take notice of the size of the Dali.
The length of that cargo ship is 984-feet long, 160-feet-wide and weighs 95,000 tons when empty. It was not empty when it collided into the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26th. If stood upright, the Dali would almost reach the top of the Eiffel Tower. While that sounds impressive, the Dali is considered to be average compared in the cargo industry. The world’s largest container ship, the MSC Irina, is more than 1,300 feet long and 200 feet wide.
Scott Boyle with Louisiana’s Department of Transportation and Development told me it’s unlikely any bridge in Louisiana or anywhere else in the United States could’ve withstood an impact from a ship the size of the Dali.
“When I saw the video, I just had a real sense of the tragedy, the sense of not having control of what was taking place. My initial thought was, when I noted the size of that ship coming at what was calculated to be approximately 10 mph, it just seemed like something that was just unavoidable. There was no control, and there was no engineering that could’ve changed that outcome,” said Boyle.
As the engineer administrator for DOTD’s District 2, which basically encompasses Southeast Louisiana, Boyle’s responsibilities are manifold. One of those responsibilities is the inspection and maintenance of the roughly 1,200 structures considered bridges in this region. I want to avoid the “could it happen here” storyline, but that’s kind of hard to do considering the many bridges that are above shipping channels and bodies of water around here.
By their definition, accidents are hard to prevent because they happen unexpectedly. So, yes, hypothetically speaking, a catastrophic allision can take place here, but they are rare. What may be more relevant and useful is to take a look at how much cargo ships have grown since 1956, the year the first commercially successful container ship sailed from Newark, New Jersey to Houston, Texas. The SS Ideal X was 524- feet-long and 30-feet-wide. Remember, the Dali is almost twice as long and almost three times as wide.
“It’s the future of shipping. Ninety percent of the world’s goods are moved by water. That’s just how it is. Everything from the clothes that you’re wearing to the hat that you have on your head, your sunglasses, computers cell phones. Everything you use, everyday appliances, cars, especially car parts, is all moving by sea, and everything is going towards a container,” said Matt Gresham, chief of governmental affairs at the Port of New Orleans.
To be part of that future that includes movement of massive cargo ships, the Port of New Orleans has to build the infrastructure to accommodate those large vessels. Ships like the Dali aren’t seen at the Port of New Orleans mainly due to the Crescent City Connection. The size, and specifically the height, of modern-day cargo ships make it impossible for them to safely navigate under the bridge. The Port of New Orleans has been working on a solution downriver.
In 2022, former Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards announced a public private partnership between the State of Louisiana, The Port of New Orleans and two leaders in the maritime industry to construct a $1.8 billion “state of the art” container facility to be located on the Lower Mississippi River in St. Bernard Parish. The goal is to have that container facility online by 2028. The planned Louisiana International Terminal (LIT) has drawn some opposition from St. Bernard political leaders. They question whether a large container facility like LIT is truly needed. Other concerns revolve around increased truck traffic and road congestion in the parish. Opponents have also claimed that traffic on the Mississippi River would be blocked during vessel departures from LIT. Officials with the Port of New Orleans point to studies that show large ships would be able to maneuver on the river and the planed LIT site in Violet was approved after more than 20 years’ worth of analysis of container supply chain operations and port operations. Even those opposed to the Port of New Orleans expansion admit it’s a David vs. Goliath scenario. But port officials say by expanding its footprint to accommodate larger cargo ships, the entire state of Louisiana could benefit. Listen to why the size of cargo ships has grown and how it not only affects traffic on the water, but also on land here.