Recovery efforts at the site of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse reached a new milestone Wednesday, as officials led by Gov. Wes Moore (D) celebrated the reopening of a shipping lane that restores full operations to the Port of Baltimore.
It comes 11 weeks after a heavy-laden cargo ship collided with the bridge. The resulting collapse killed six workers, cut off a vital link between the east and west banks of the Patapsco River and all but halted work at the port.
“We’re now thankful that this morning, we can tell you that three of the four objectives have really come to a measure of completion and frankly, in a speed that I think that people can and should be very proud of,” Moore said on a call with reporters.
In March, Moore said the state would focus on four priorities: Assisting the families of the six killed in the accident, including recovering their remains; supporting affected businesses, port workers and first responders; reopening the federal shipping channel; and rebuilding the bridge.
“By working together, we have achieved the first three of our four directives. But in this administration, we don’t settle for ‘almost.’ We finish the work we start,” Moore said during the event Wednesday afternoon at the port.
The reopening of the 700-foot-deep, 50-foot-wide shipping lane called the Fort McHenry Federal Channel clears the way for full operations to resume at the port.
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Click here to read thee rest of this story written by Bryan Sears over at Maryland Matters
