The Dali ship, which caused the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge two months ago, was successfully refloated Monday morning and was moving toward Baltimore Harbor.
The Dali appeared to start moving shortly after 6 a.m., the Associated Press reported, after starting and stopping a few times before leaving the site of the collapse.
The Key Bridge Unified Response Command Said Saturday the whole process it would be at least 21 hours before crews refloated and began moving the ship. High tide on Monday morning was expected to bring ideal conditions.
The unified command said that once the ship was clear of the wreckage, up to five tugs would escort it at 1 mph over the 2.5-mile distance to the local marine terminal.
The ship has remained in place since the accident on March 26, which caused the dramatic collapse of one of the region’s most frequented bridges and left six construction workers dead.
Last week, a crew conducted a controlled demolition that sent the crushed steel section of the grounded container ship underwater in seconds, marking a crucial step in the ship’s extensive removal process.
On Sunday, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) said the Dali would be removed from the bay “within days.”
Moore told NBC’s Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press” that crews are working to get the ship out of the canal soon, also promising to reopen the canal.
“And even though people have said it could take six and nine months, I’m proud that we’re on the right track, that by the end of May we’ll have that federal canal reopened and within a few days, we’ll have that huge ship, the From there, outside that federal channel,” he said.
“And I think for people who are concerned about the cost, what I want to say is this: The American people will be happy with this, and we just need to make sure we have to do it quickly, on time and on budget. And that’s our focus,” she added.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
