The administration of US President Joe Biden confirmed $60 million in emergency funding to support response and recovery efforts following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Maryland.
The Federal Highway Administration stated on Thursday that it provided “quick release” funds to rebuild the collapsed bridge within hours after receiving a request from the Maryland Department of Transportation.
Earlier this week, Biden announced that he had instructed the government to promptly rebuild the bridge, which collapsed on Tuesday after being struck by a cargo ship. US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg declared that “no one will ever forget the shocking images of a container vessel striking the Francis Scott Key Bridge.”
The federal emergency funds we’re releasing today will help Maryland begin urgent work, to be followed by further resources as recovery and rebuilding efforts progress.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore stated that they had a “very long road ahead” to recover from the disaster as experts considered how to extract the Singapore-flagged Dali from the affected bridge wreckage.
“The Dali is almost as long as the Eiffel Tower and the Dali has the Key Bridge on top of it. We’re talking 3,000 or 4,000 tonnes of steel that’s sitting on top of that ship.”
Authorities said they needed to remove debris from the ocean floor to reach the bodies of four missing workers believed to be stuck in their vehicles in a “superstructure” of concrete and other wreckage. Divers recovered the bodies of two workers from a pick-up truck near the middle span of the bridge on Wednesday.
Federal officials told Maryland lawmakers that the final cost of rebuilding the bridge could reach $2 billion. Governor Moore assured that they would take care of the people and emphasised the need to reconstruct the bridge.
One of the things we were taught is, that you always take care of your people […] We have a very long road ahead of us. We understand that, and we’re preparing.
The governor noted that the port handled more cars and farm equipment than any other port in America. At least 8,000 dock workers have jobs that “have been directly affected by this collapse,” he added.
