Maryland officials announced they're suing the owner of the cargo ship that crashed into Baltimore's Key Bridge, collapsing the structure and killing six people earlier this year.
The ship was not fit to sail that morning and the crash was a result of "stunning" mismanagement, disinterest or incompetence, the state's attorney general said.
Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown and Gov. Wes Moore announced the sweeping lawsuit against the ship's owner, Grace Ocean Private Limited and its operator, Synergy Marine Private Limited, at a news conference Tuesday morning.
"What happened in the early morning of March 26 should never have happened," Moore said.
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The Dali had unsafe conditions for months, including a vibration problem that forced nuts and screws loose and caused electrical outages on the day of the crash, Moore's office said in a press release. Ships like the Dali are supposed to be equipped with backup, and Grace Ocean and Synergy Marine failed, Brown said. Their failure resulted in one of the most catastrophic and preventable maritime disasters in Maryland history, he said.
Maryland officials are seeking to recoup the likely billions in damages from the Key Bridge collapse, saying the owners and managers of the Dali are responsible.
"We will not allow Marylanders to be left with the bill for the gross negligence, mismanagement and incompetence that caused this harm," Brown said.
The lawsuit does not specify a certain monetary amount, but Brown discussed a long list of damages, including lost toll and tourism revenue, environmental contamination and the cost of rebuilding the bridge itself.
"A key artery to the port of Baltimore, which helped move billions of dollars of freight every single year should still be here right now …. And the six victims should all be here right now," Brown said.
Cargo ship became 'a dark missile' after power failed and owner didn't alert Coast Guard, attorney general says
Among Brown’s starkest comments, he said the Dali was not fit to sail that morning and the ship "became a dark missile" when power failed on the ship and the crew lost control. He said the ship's leadership failed to notify the U.S. Coast Guard and lacked backup systems.
"This disaster was entirely preventable," the lawsuit says in part.
The Dali had two electrical power failures hours before it left the Port of Baltimore, but the ship's owner and operator didn't diagnose or correct the problems or report them to the U.S. Coast Guard as legally required, the suit says. The operators also didn't inform the two local pilots from the Association of Maryland Pilots, who boarded the Dali to guide its departure from the Port of Baltimore, the suit says.
"In fact, the DALI's master falsely reported to the Pilots that everything was in good working order," the lawsuit said.
The issues the attorney general listed included:
- failure to maintain electrical equipment necessary to ensure the ship would not lose power
- the intentional circumventing of critical safety features that should have restored power before the collision
- failure to properly hire and train their crew
- failure to put adequate procedures in place to ensure this disaster would not happen
The lawsuit praised the local pilots' "prompt action" in warning Maryland Department of Transportation staff, who quickly closed the bridge to traffic moments before impact. However, other requests from the local pilots were not followed, the suit said, which had "devastating consequences."
Six workers who were on the bridge died in the collapse.
Last week, the families of three of the victims announced their own lawsuit against Grace Ocean Private Limited, the owner of the cargo ship. Relatives of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera said the crash was the result of "deadly negligence."
Through a statement sent to NBC News, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean Private Limited said last week that by court order, any claim against the owner of the Dalí must be filed before Sept. 24.
Statements from the Dali's owner and operator on the new lawsuit were not immediately available Tuesday.
