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The US Department of Justice filed a $100 million lawsuit on Wednesday against the owner and operator of the container ship that crashed into Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge in March, killing six workers and halting operations at one of the country’s busiest ports.
DOJ officials said that the two Singapore-based companies, Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Private Limited, were “well aware” of mechanical issues with the Dali ship that led to a power outage, causing the crash. The companies’ actions leading up to the accident were “outrageous, grossly negligent, willful, wanton, and reckless,” the lawsuit alleged.
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The US is seeking damages to cover the cost of the emergency response and federal aid to port employees who were put out of work because of the collapse.
The lawsuit alleged that because of “jury-rigged” maintenance onboard the ship, “none of the four means available to help control the Dali — her propeller, rudder, anchor, or bow thruster — worked when they were needed to avert or even mitigate this disaster.”
Families of three of the six construction workers killed in the collapse said Tuesday they would be filing separate lawsuits.
According to court filings, Grace Ocean and Synergy Marine said their liability should be capped at $44 million.
Maryland officials said that it could take up to 4 years to rebuild the bridge at a cost of up to $1.9 billion.