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After the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in March, many charterers and carriers asked Maryland Port Administration Executive Director Jonathan Daniels a common question: How can we help?
“Our answer was pretty simple,” Daniels told Supply Chain Dive in an interview Tuesday. “”You can come back when the channel opens.”
The Port of Baltimore leader’s response revealed perhaps the biggest fear on his and many Marylanders’ minds in the wake of the tragedy: Permanent diversions to other ports could escalate the deadly disaster into a threat to the long-term viability of the state’s main economic engine. .
Six construction workers were killed when the freighter Dali lost power and hit the bridge on March 26. The bridge collapse cut off ship access to the port, forcing cargo diversions to Virginia, Georgia and elsewhere.
Eleven weeks and millions of dollars in lost wages and revenue later, the port fully reopened with a ceremony Wednesday. “The Fort McHenry Canal has been fully cleared and the Port of Baltimore has reopened for business,” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore announced at the event.
Daniels said he doesn’t expect the number of ships to return to previous levels until 2025. But the port is poised for a recovery as bookings resume, according to Baltimore port supply chain, labor, trucking and other supply chain executives .
“From what we’ve seen with the program so far — which continues to go from strength to strength — they’re true to their word,” Daniels said.
Monthly Tons of General Cargo at the Port of Baltimore
The precipitous drop in volumes after the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge
Senders “have either already returned or are planning to return”
No shipping companies or other Port of Baltimore customers have shared plans to fundamentally change their long-term supply chains because of the bridge collapse, the port’s executive director told Supply Chain Dive.
“It was just a modification of when they would come back, not if they would come back,” Daniels said.
Importers, in particular, expected carriers to offer bills of lading in Baltimore, said Lee Connor, president of John S. Connor Inc., a customs brokerage and logistics company in the Baltimore area.
Shipping companies “were not going to come here until they were sure they could get their ships in and out,” Connor said.
But most customers who shipped to the Port of Baltimore “did so for a good reason,” said the century-old company’s president.
“This works for their business,” Connor said. “Either they have already returned or are planning to return.”
Job ready to go back to work
Thousands of Baltimore dockers can’t wait to get back to the wharves. Local 333 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association pressed their union leader on when they will see more hours.
“Obviously they’re looking for more work because they’re coming back a little bit slower,” ILA Local 333 President Scott Cowan said in an interview. “They just want to get back to work.”
Cowan expressed excitement at how quickly response teams were able to remove the bridge debris from the canal — and surprise at the rush to return cargo volumes.
“He’s coming back stronger than I expected,” Cowan said. “We’re going in the right direction.”
![Rescue crews continue to clear debris from the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Patapsco River on June 11, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland.](https://www.truckingdive.com/imgproxy/1m7HUsBpue875749pswY3uMQfpZKirG7fZUlUSxA0BA/g:ce/rs:fit:0:860/bG9jYWw6Ly8vZGl2ZWltYWdlL0dldHR5SW1hZ2VzLTIxNTcxNzM0MDUuanBn.webp)
![Rescue crews continue to clear debris from the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Patapsco River on June 11, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland.](https://www.truckingdive.com/imgproxy/1m7HUsBpue875749pswY3uMQfpZKirG7fZUlUSxA0BA/g:ce/rs:fit:0:860/bG9jYWw6Ly8vZGl2ZWltYWdlL0dldHR5SW1hZ2VzLTIxNTcxNzM0MDUuanBn.webp)
Rescue crews finish cleaning up debris from the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Patapsco River in Baltimore on June 11.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images via Getty Images
Despite the reopening, Port of Baltimore truckers still benefit from federal regulatory waiver extensions until later this month to drive other East Coast ports, said Louis Campion, president and CEO of the Maryland Motor Truck Association.
Shipping lines typically book delivery locations four to six weeks in advance, the state trucking association president pointed out.
“It’s a little early for us to expect something to happen dramatically here, all of a sudden, in the next few days,” he said. “I would probably liken it a little more to a trickle-down phenomenon until we start to fully replicate some of those long sea lines in Baltimore.”
Baltimore adds visibility and cargo capacity
The nation’s busiest port for cars, light trucks and other roll-on/roll-off cargo is emerging from its shutdown, offering shippers improved visibility and capacity.
Ports America Chesapeake, which operates the Baltimore container terminal under a long-term agreement, has joined the federal Freight Logistics Optimization Works (FLOW) data sharing program. after the collapse, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced at the ceremony.
“This comes at a welcome and important time,” Buttigieg said. “As the Port of Baltimore reopens, this transparency will be critical in preparing for the next phase.”
Baltimore also has more room for car shipments. Tradepoint Atlantic, the port’s only unaffected terminal, at the former Bethlehem Steel site at Sparrow Point, received an $8 million federal grant to pave parking lots, doubling its car capacity.
“We’ve seen significant recovery in roll-on/roll-off cargo which is really a staple of the port,” Daniels said. “We’re finally seeing container ships making a serious comeback.”