President Biden said on Friday that he will go to Baltimore next week after a section of the bridge collapsed, resulting in six deaths and a temporary closure of the city’s port.
Biden mentioned that he will be visiting alongside Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D). He stated this shortly after the collapse early on Tuesday. he planned to go to the site “as quickly as” he can.
The Francis Scott Key Bridge, on Interstate 695, was hit around 1:30 a.m. by cargo ship Dali, which was headed to Sri Lanka, causing nearly the entire steel structure to fall into the water.
Biden has promised that the government will pay to reconstruct the bridge, but this has faced opposition from conservative spending hawks and liberals, who believe the cargo vessel's owner shares some blame for the tragedy. met with backlash from conservative spending hawks. That includes those who are already angry that Congress approved a massive 2024 spending package, and liberals, who are arguing the blame for the tragedy lies, at least in part, with the owner of the cargo vessel.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg went to Baltimore on Tuesday. He mentioned on Wednesday there is no timeline for when the Port of Baltimore can reopen.
When asked about a timeline for the bridge reopening, Buttigieg said the administration needs to get a sense of the condition of its infrastructure, but it will be “some time.”
He also noted it took five years to build the original bridge but added it doesn’t “necessarily mean five years to replace.”
Eight construction workers were fixing potholes on the bridge Tuesday when the container ship lost power and collided with the bridge. Two survived the collapse, two others were found by divers in the water, and four are still missing.
Cranes were deployed to the wreckage Friday to clean up the scene and begin the recovery process.
