First cargo ship passes through newly opened channel in Baltimore since bridge collapse

BALTIMORE– The first cargo ship passed through a newly opened deepwater canal in Baltimore on Thursday after being stuck in the port since the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed four weeks ago.

The Balsa 94, a Panama-flagged bulk carrier, passed through the new 40-foot canal en route to St. John, Canada.

The ship is one of five stranded ships expected to pass through the new, temporary canal. The ship sailed through the canal on Thursday morning, accompanied by two tugboats, one at the front and one at the back. It slowly passed the wreckage of the bridge and the Dali, the huge container ship that caused the collapse when it collided with one of the bridge’s support columns.

The Balsa 94 is expected to arrive in Canada on Monday.

The new channel will remain open until Monday or Tuesday. It will then close again until about May 10 while crews work to remove steel from the Dali and refloat the ship, which will then be guided back to port, officials said earlier this week.

The depth of 10 meters is a significant increase compared to the three other temporary canals constructed in recent weeks. It puts the cleanup effort slightly ahead of schedule, as officials previously said they hoped to open a canal of that depth by the end of April.

Five of the seven cargo ships stuck in the Port of Baltimore will be able to pass through the new canal, including one loaded car carrier, officials said. Other ships will enter the port, which normally handles more cars and agricultural machinery than any other in the country.

The port’s main channel, with a control depth of 15 metres, will reopen next month after the ship is removed. That will essentially return shipping to normal.