SINGAPORE - The Singapore-flagged vessel that crashed into a bridge in Baltimore on March 26 had passed foreign port state inspections in June and September 2023.
The Dali – a Singapore-flagged 95,000 gross ton container vessel – rammed into one of the pillars of the four-lane Francis Scott Key Bridge at around 1.30am local time (1.30pm Singapore time) on March 26, causing the bridge to collapse.
Six people were presumed dead after emergency workers suspended rescue efforts. Two people were rescued from the Patapsco River, with one reported to be in critical condition.
Singapore’s Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat said in a post on Facebook on March 27 that he had written to United States Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to reaffirm Singapore’s commitment to render assistance.
“As a flag state, our officers will work closely with the US Coast Guard and agencies to fully support the investigations,” said Mr Chee.
Officials from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the Transport Safety Investigation Bureau were set to arrive in Baltimore on March 27 to help with the investigations.
Mr Chee added that he was deeply saddened by the damage due to the collapse of the bridge following the allision – the impact of a moving vessel with a stationary object such as a bridge abutment – with the Dali.
MPA chief executive Teo Eng Dih said in a LinkedIn post: “Our thoughts are with the affected families and the people of Baltimore in this difficult period.”
During the June 2023 inspection, MPA said in a statement on March 27, a faulty monitor gauge for fuel pressure was fixed before the vessel departed the port. In response to queries from The Straits Times, MPA declined to say which were the foreign ports that conducted the inspections.
The Dali had been flagged with Singapore from October 2016 and is classed by classification society ClassNK.
ClassNK, also known as Nippon Kaiji Kyokai, is a non-profit organisation founded in Japan. According to its website, it provides ship classification services such as approval of vessel and machinery plans, survey and registration of ships and their installations, and assessment and registration of ship safety management systems.
“Classification societies are generally authorised by a flag administration to monitor compliance to technical standards and the applicable regulations by vessels registered under its flag,” said MPA.
“Based on records, MPA confirms that the vessel’s required classification society and statutory certificates covering the structural integrity of the vessel and functionality of the vessel’s equipment were valid at the time of the incident.”
The Dali’s next classification and statutory surveys are due in June 2024, said MPA.
In July 2016, the Dali was also involved in an accident in the port of Antwerp, Belgium. It hit a quay while trying to exit the North Sea container terminal.
According to Equasis, a public database for the shipping industry, an inspection of the vessel conducted in 2016 in Antwerp showed that it had a structural issue, which was described as “hull damage impairing its seaworthiness”.
