The U.S. Navy is doing its part to recover the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore Harbor. Collapsed because of the collision of a commercial barge, the bridge is a major route for commercial traffic in the Baltimore, Md. area.
Three barges have been contracted through the U.S. Naval Sea Systems Command to work with the Coast Guard for work on the collapsed bridge and to help reopen the naval channel (see image above). They are the Chesapeake, a 1,000-ton lift capacity derrick barge; the Ferrell, a 200-ton lift capacity revolving crane barge; and the Oyster Bay, a 150-ton lift capacity crane barge; with a fourth to come,
The U.S. Navy’s Supervisor of Salvage and Diving will guide the barges in the removal of submerged portions of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in phases, a section at a time. Disassembled pieces will be lifted onto barges for transport away from the bridge.
These initial four vessels will be assisted by an additional 12 crane and support vessels that are in the process of mobilization. Those vessels include craft with diving and surveillance capabilities to aid in the clearing of the damaged bridge sections and the reconstruction of the area’s major thoroughfare.