1 of 2 | A Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City MH-60 Jayhawk crew conducts an overflight assessment of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore on March 29. Photo by PO1 Brandon Giles/U. S. Coast Guard | License Photo
The Federal Bureau of Investigation opened an investigation Monday to determine if criminal wrongdoing was part of the March collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge.
This new investigation will focus on whether the crew knew when leaving port that something had been wrong with the Dali, The Washington Post, ABC News and NBC News reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. Advertisement
Federal agents were seen Monday morning beginning to get on board the cargo ship after three boats were seen at around 6:30 a.m. EDT pulling up to the port side of the Dali. Roughly a half hour later that was followed by possibly a dozen more others who climbed on board the ship.
“The FBI is present aboard the cargo ship Dali conducting court-authorized law enforcement activity,” the agency said Monday morning in a statement.
Federal agents were collecting evidence and other evidence related to last month’s crash.
The 984-foot, Singapore-flagged ship Dali hit the 47-year-old bridge at about 1:30 a.m. EDT on March 26 after the vessel experienced mechanical failures and crashed into a support pillar. The large part of the bridge then collapsed into the Patapsco River within seconds. Six people died as a result. Advertisement
Maryland U.S. Attorney Erek Barron noted how his office typically would not confirm or comment on possible investigations.
“However, the public should know, whether it’s gun violence, civil rights abuse, financial fraud, or any other threat to public safety or property, we will seek accountability for anyone who may be responsible,” according to Barron, a former policy adviser and legal counsel to then-Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware.
This FBI probe is separate from a National Transportation Safety Board investigation which launched in earnest March 27 the day after the crash.
The FBI probe into the Dali’s crash launched Monday came the same day Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott announced that a Philadelphia and New York law firm would be aiding the city in its own legal response to the bridge crash and the ensuing fallout.
“We are continuing to do everything in our power to support everyone impacted here and will continue to recognize the human impact this event has had,” the mayor said in a release.
“Part of that work needs to be seeking recourse from those who may potentially be responsible, and with the ship’s owner filing a petition to limit its liability mere days after the incident, we need to act equally as quickly to protect the City’s interests,” he added. Advertisement
Scenes from Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore
A damaged container ship rests next to a bridge pillar in the Patapsco River after crashing into and destroying the Francis Scott Key Bridge at the entrance to Baltimore harbor on March 26, 2024. Photo by David Tulis/UPI | License Photo
