Port of Baltimore shipping channel set to reopen soon
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The Chesapeake 1000 crane barge carries the last large piece of the Francis Scott Key Bridge blocking the main shipping channel towards Tradepoint Atlantic Tuesday afternoon. Photo: Jerry Jackson/Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
The Port of Baltimore could fully reopen this weekend after local officials announced Wednesday salvage crews had removed the final large piece of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge blocking the shipping channel.
Why it matters: The port was one of the busiest in the U.S. and vessel traffic has been restricted since the cargo ship Dali struck the bridge and caused its fatal collapse in March.
Driving the news: "Ten weeks after the collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge, salvage crews successfully removed the final large steel truss segment blocking the 700-foot-wide Fort McHenry Federal Channel on June 3-4," per a statement from the Key Bridge Response Unified Command team.
- "Full restoration is projected by June 8-10."
The big picture: Six construction workers died when the bridge collapsed into the Patapsco River after the cargo ship struck the key piece of Maryland infrastructure on March 26.
- The ship was removed last month and officials opened temporary shipping channels while crews worked on removing the bridge debris.
Go deeper: Unpacking the economic fallout from the Baltimore bridge collapse
