The cargo ship that caused the deadly Francis Scott Key bridge collapse has been cleared from the entrance to the Port of Baltimore, officials said.
The Dali, which has remained stuck in the vital shipping lane since the collapse on March 26, is expected to sail to Virginia to undergo repairs and offload its cargo, according to the US Coast Guard Mid-Atlantic Office.
The Coast Guard will be closely monitoring and traveling along with the Dali to ensure it reaches its destination at the Norfolk International Terminal.
The crew of the vessel has been stuck on board the Dali while the salvage effort cleared the wreckage of the bridge and freed the ship.
Now that the ship is free and in transit, 10 of its 21 crew members were previously cleared to leave the Dali and return home, CBS News reports.
The Indian nationals are expected to be housed in Baltimore amid the ongoing litigation and FBI investigation over the collapse that killed six construction workers when the Dali slammed against one of the bridge’s supporting columns.
Rev. Josh Messick, of the Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center, said his charity is also working to get the remaining 11 crew members off the boat, but warned them that they might be stuck in the US for months.
“They’ll be here for the duration of the litigation process, which could take a year or more,” Messick told CBS.
“I and the other entities involved who are there to support them have as gently as possible tried to prepare them for this eventuality—that they could be here for the foreseeable future,” he added.
“And when all is said and done, there may be one or more of them that remains even longer.”
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Synergy Marine, the company that manages the ship, has said it will continue to pay for for food and lodging for the crew members while they’re stuck in the US.
The Singapore Maritime Officers’ Union has previously said that the crew has been distressed by an “unfounded” fear that they will be held personally liable for the accident, even though evidence which has emerged in the investigation so far indicates that will not be the case.
Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board have so far suggested that the crew appeared to do everything right when the Dali experienced two power outages while sailing out of the Port of Baltimore.
The second outage caused the ship to lose its steering and propulsion, leading it to smash into one of the bridge’s support columns, leading to the collapse.