Biden takes helicopter tour of the site of the Baltimore bridge collapse: Marine One flies over the wreckage after the administration announced more than $60million in funds to get port back open

President Joe Biden will tour the site of the collapsed bridge in Baltimore on Friday amid political turmoil over how to pay for its repairs, which are expected to cost up to $2 billion.

Conservatives on Capitol Hill are already objecting to the price tag.

The House Freedom Caucus wants all the money to be “fully offset” by cuts elsewhere in the federal budget, and they are demanding that the Biden administration lift its pause on approving natural gas export projects before approving any bridge money.

Biden will take an aerial tour of the Patapsco River, at the mouth of the Port of Baltimore, via Marine One, where he will see the remains of the Francis Scott Key Bridge as cranes, ships and dive crews work to reopen one of the huge shipping routes. .

President Biden flies over the crash site in Marine One

The president will also receive updates from the U.S. Coast Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers on the repair process.

The bridge, in one of the country’s busiest ports, was struck by a huge cargo ship and collapsed in the middle of the night of March 26.

Eight workers – all immigrants from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras or El Salvador – were patching holes in the bridge when it was hit. Two men were rescued, but the bodies of only two of the six dead have been recovered.

The president plans to meet with the families of the victims.

The White House announced Friday that it has asked Congress to authorize the federal government to cover 100 percent of the costs of cleaning up and rebuilding the collapsed bridges, rather than seeking the money through a separate, supplemental emergency funding request.

In a letter to congressional leaders, Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young noted that similar techniques were used for recovery and rebuilding efforts that received congressional support in 2007, when a highway bridge collapsed in downtown Minneapolis during the evening rush hour, killing 13 people.

“We ask Congress to join us in demonstrating our commitment to assisting recovery efforts,” Young wrote. It is still unclear how much money the government needs to cover the costs.

The Federal Highway Administration has already provided $60 million in emergency funding to get repairs underway. And the Transportation Department has allocated $8.2 million to help reroute freight.

A temporary shipping lane has been established to facilitate the repair process and transport some cargo.

President Joe Biden takes an aerial tour of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore aboard Marine One

The wreck of the Francis Scott Key Bridge

But a prolonged shutdown could be a shock to the economy.

Typically, as much as $200 million in freight passes through the Port of Baltimore each day, and it is the main hub for importing and exporting vehicles.

Top White House officials, including chief of staff Jeff Zients, senior adviser Tom Perez and economic adviser Lael Brainard, have called major employers in the Baltimore area to encourage them to retain workers, a White House official said. These companies include United Parcel Service, Amazon.com, Home Depot and Mercedes-Benz.

Biden said on the day of the collapse that the federal government will pay for the repairs in full and that they will be done as quickly as possible.

‘We will make it operational again as soon as possible. 15,000 jobs depend on that port. And we’re going to do everything we can to protect those jobs,” Biden said in a speech at the White House.

“I am leading my team to move heaven and earth three, open the port and rebuild the bridge as quickly as possible,” he said.

“It is my intention that the federal government will pay the full cost of rebuilding that bridge. I expect Congress will support my efforts. This will take some time. The people of Baltimore can count on us to be with them every step of the way,” Biden said at the time.

The Singaporean-flagged Dali crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26

The crash occurred at approximately 1:30 am on the morning of March 26. The ship, the Singaporean-flagged Dali, lasted 20 minutes on its journey when it struck a support column on the bridge.

However, the ship’s crew managed to issue a Mayday before it crashed into the bridge, allowing officials to prevent cars from entering the bridge.

The 300-metre-long Dali, a Singaporean-flagged container, left Seagirt Marine Terminal in Baltimore at 12:24 p.m. At 01:25 he began to slow and deviate from course. Video shows the lights on board going out just before the crash.

The Dali ship was bound for Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is unclear what cargo it contained. The ship was scheduled to land in Asia on April 27.

About 30,000 vehicles use the bridge, named after the writer of the Star Spangled Banner, every day. It opened in 1977.