Posted on 02/12/25
| News Source: Pikesville Patch
Regulators with Maryland Occupational Safety and Health fined Brawner Builders $2,100 following the conclusion of an investigation into the March 26, 2024 bridge collapse, the Baltimore Sun reported. According to the report, the construction firm violated an occupational safety standard designed to protect workers from falls.
Despite the fine, the report noted the violation did not cause or contribute to the deaths of the workers who were repairing potholes on the bridge when the cargo ship Dali lost power and crashed into a support column.
Following the collision, the crossing plunged into the Patapsco River below, blocking the Port of Baltimore for months and forcing ongoing traffic strain on the Interstate 95 and 895 tunnels.
Brawner Builders is contesting the fine, the Sun reported.
The Dali suffered two electrical blackouts that led to major equipment failure hours before it struck the bridge, according to a preliminary report released by the National Transportation Safety Board.
In the report, officials wrote that the Dali had experienced electrical problems the day before the collision. In the hours before the ship left the Port of Baltimore on a voyage to Sri Lanka, the ship lost power twice, causing the vessel to lose propulsion and the ability to steer.
According to officials, a mistake by a crew member working on a diesel engine part caused the first "in-port blackout." A second blackout in port was attributed to "insufficient fuel pressure," the report said.
The National Transportation Safety Board has not yet released its final report on the collapse, though officials said a loose cable in the ship’s electrical switchboard likely contributed to its power issues. Federal agents boarded the cargo ship Dali amid a criminal investigation last year.
Last fall, the state of Maryland filed a lawsuit against the owner and manager of the Dali, one of several filings accusing Grace Ocean Private Ltd. and Synergy Marine Pte Ltd. of negligence and incompetence following the collapse.
Last week, a federal judge denied a petition filed by the state and Ace American Insurance Company to sue Grace Ocean outside of the U.S. District Court of Maryland, according to WYPR report.
In his ruling, U.S. District Judge James Bredar denied the petition, claiming that other courts’ involvement in the case could lead to delay, unfairness and inefficiency.
In all, 55 claimants suing Grace Ocean, including the city of Baltimore, the state of Maryland, and the families of those killed on the bridge.
The first trial against Grace Ocean is set to start in June 2026, WYPR reported. In October, Grace Ocean and Synergy Marine Group agreed to pay more than $100 million to settle a lawsuit brought by the U.S. Department of Justice.
When it was filed in September, the Justice Department civil claim provided the most detailed account yet of the cascading series of failures that left the Dali’s pilots and crew helpless in the face of looming disaster. The complaint pointed to “excessive vibrations” on the ship that attorneys called a “well-known cause of transformer and electrical failure.” Instead of dealing with the source of the excessive vibrations, crew members “jury-rigged” the ship, the complaint alleged.
It also noted cracked equipment in the engine room and pieces of cargo shaken loose. The ship’s electrical equipment was in such bad condition that an independent agency stopped further electrical testing because of safety concerns, according to the lawsuit.