A preliminary National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report says the cargo ship Dali that collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore lost power twice in the hours before it left port.

Baltimore

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released preliminary findings concerning a significant incident involving the cargo ship Dali, which collided with the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore earlier this year. According to the report, the Dali experienced critical power losses prior to the collision, which contributed to the unfortunate event. 

The NTSB investigation details that approximately 10 hours before departing port on March 25th, the Dali first lost power due to a crew member's error involving the incorrect closure of an exhaust damper. This led to the engine stalling, although the ship's crew was eventually able to restore power. Subsequently, the ship encountered a second power outage triggered by a loss of fuel pressure, but power was again restored using an alternative breaker.

Further complicating the Dali's pre-collision struggles, it suffered an additional power failure that halted all three of its steering pumps just minutes before the incident on the morning of March 26th. Despite an emergency generator kicking in, it wasn't set up to power the vessel's steering needs. Efforts to avoid the crash included a call for tug assistance, but the help could not reach the Dali in time to prevent it from ramming the bridge.

These findings are part of an ongoing investigation by the NTSB, with the conclusive report expected to be completed in over a year. As these are only preliminary findings, further insights into the causes and circumstances of the collision will be revealed in the full report.



Report: Ship lost power twice before ramming Baltimore bridge

To a Scripps News follow-up, the NTSB says the cargo ship Dolly suffered catastrophic electrical failures just before crashing into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in March. That was part of a preliminary report released today. Investigators say on March 25th, about 10 hours before leaving the port, the ship had a blackout after a crew member mistakenly closed an exhaust damper. It caused the engine to stall. The crew was able to restore power but then the ship suffered a second blackout due to a loss of fuel pressure. Power was restored using a different breaker. The NTSB says the Dolly suffered another power loss, stopping all three steering pumps just minutes before the crash the morning of March 26th. The crew says an emergency generator started but it was not configured to power the ship. The pilots then called for a tug assist but the tug was not available or to make it in time to the Dolly and these are just preliminary findings. The full report is expected to take more than a year.

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Paris

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Taipei

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Chico

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El Paso

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Paris Olympics

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Washington

Israel-Gaza War

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Dhaka

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