The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit in Maryland against the owners of the cargo ship Dali that caused the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge in March.
Relief of more than $100 million is sought from the cargo ship’s owner, Grace Ocean Private Ltd., and manager, Synergy Marine Group, both Singapore-based. The Justice Department says the ship’s electrical and mechanical systems weren’t maintained properly, ultimately causing the ship to lose power and collide with the bridge.
“This tragedy was entirely avoidable. The electrical and mechanical systems on the DALI were improperly maintained and configured in a way that violated safety regulations and norms for international shipping,” according to the lawsuit.
The government seeks to recover money spent to clear the shipping channel and reopen the vital port.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland underscored the need for the lawsuit so that the American taxpayer would not bear the costs.
“With this civil claim, the Justice Department is working to ensure that the costs of clearing the channel and reopening the Port of Baltimore are borne by the companies that caused the crash, not by the American taxpayer,” Garland said in a statement.
The collision and subsequent bridge collapse halted shipping traffic, causing ports to slow or halt until the channel fully reopened in June.
The crash claimed the lives of six construction workers repairing the bridge at the time of the collapse. The victims’ families are also filing suit against the owner and manager of the Dali, holding them liable for the accident.
“The Baltimore region continues to feel the adverse impacts of this entirely avoidable tragedy,” according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit details actions that led up to the collision, saying the ship’s owner and manager “sent an ill-prepared crew on an abjectly unseaworthy vessel to navigate” the nation’s waterways.
The lawsuit also notes that the Dali’s owners and manager have asked the court to limit their liability to less than $44 million.
In addition, the litigation says the owner and manager of the ship were reaping the “benefit of conducting business in American ports,” while “they cut corners in ways that risked the lives and infrastructure.”
The Department of Justice maintains that the owners and managers should be held fully accountable for their actions, hoping it will “deter” further “misconduct.”
“Those responsible for the vessel must be held fully accountable for the catastrophic harm they caused, and punitive damages should be imposed to deter such misconduct,” according to the lawsuit.
