The tragic collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore was a result of a collision with the cargo ship Dali. Its mega size immediately attracts the eye in every image, draped with the steel girders that came crashing down after the impact.
Not so visible, both to the eye and to those writing about the disaster, are the 22 crew members from India who are still on the ship and are doomed to remain there for the foreseeable future.
Who are they and why are they still there?
They are seafarers traveling aboard the 985-foot-long cargo ship that was on its way to Sri Lanka, carrying 4,700 shipping containers, when it lost power and struck the Key Bridge, causing the structure to collapse.
They are keeping the ship operable, but at the same time, they find themselves at the center of the investigation that is trying to arrive at answers about the catastrophe that killed six workers and disrupted one of the prime global shipping routes.
Isolated, captive on the ship, and the subjects of a barrage of questions from officials, “They must feel this weight of responsibility that they couldn’t stop it from happening,” said Joshua Messick, the executive director of the Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center, a religious nonprofit that seeks to protect the rights of mariners.
There is no blame attached to them, indeed, their swift mayday message that was transmitted over the radio as the ship lost power Tuesday, saved many lives and they have been praised for their quick action by local authorities and officials.
Their immediate future is uncertain, but they are most likely to remain on the ship for quite sometime; they must wait for enough debris to be cleared to free the ship and reopen the channel to one of the busiest ports in the United States. On Saturday, the governor of Maryland said officials planned to remove the first piece of the debris. There are many more to go before the crew can be extricated from the tangle.
“The captain of the vessel and the crew have a duty to the ship,” said Stephen Frailey, a partner at Pacific Maritime Group, which helps with marine salvage and wreck removal.
Practically speaking, they are not in want of any necessities. According to Chris James, who works for a consulting firm assisting the ship’s management company, Synergy Marine, the crew members have ample supplies of food and water, as well as plenty of fuel to keep the generators going.
How long will they be there? There is still no exact timeline for when the ship might be disentangled from the wreckage, James said. Once the NTSB and the Coast Guard finish their investigations, he said, “we’ll look at potentially swapping the crew out and getting them home.”
In the meantime, they do have some leisurely activities available to them onboard. The Dali crew has at least a TV, magazines and books, said Andrew Middleton, who runs Apostleship of the Sea, a program that ministers to sailors coming through the port. Admittedly it’s not much to while away the time and relieve the stress of their surroundings, but they are getting some support from the Baltimore port community through third parties or WhatsApp. On Friday they were sent two Wi-Fi hot spots because they did not have internet onboard.
Middleton said he had been keeping in touch with two crew members, reminding them that “we’re here for them.” “When I’ve asked how they’re doing, their answers range from ‘good’ to ‘great,’” he said. “So, by their own accounts, they’re OK.”
Messick said he had also sent a care package to the crew through a salvage company helping with operations. In the package were candy, home-baked muffins from a concerned local and thank-you cards from children.
For now, these small acts of kindness will have to suffice.
