Port of Baltimore to open for limited maritime traffic in 4 weeks, USACE says

April 5 (UPI) -- Military engineers working to clear debris of a bridge that collapsed into the Patapsco River last week said they expect limited maritime traffic to be able to move through the Port of Baltimore by the end of the month and that it could be full operational by June.

Vessel traffic to and from the Port of Baltimore has been suspended since March 26, when a cargo ship struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing the structure to collapse into the river.

Since then, engineers have been working to get the important shipping route back in order.

In a statement Thursday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, said following detailed studies and engineering assessments of the situation that it should be able to open a limited-access channel by the end of April and that the port could be back to full capacity by the end of May.

"Thanks to the exhaustive work of the unified command during the last two weeks ... we've developed a better understanding of the immense and complex work that lies ahead," said Lt. Gen. Scott Spellmon, USACE commanding general.

"A fully opened federal channel remains our primary goal, and we will carry out this work with care and precision, with safety as our chief priority."

Until the port is back to full capacity, the USCE said the limited-access channel it expects to open by the end of this month will be 280 feet wide, 35 feet deep.

The channel will accommodate one-way traffic in and out of the Port of Baltimore, permitting barge container service and some roll on/roll off vessels that transport vehicles and farm equipment to access the port, it said.

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott on Thursday night called the tentative timeline "ambitious" and dependent on several factors, but that the act of setting a goal was "critically important for families waiting to bring loved ones home and the thousands of Baltimoreans and Marylanders who rely on the port."

"This timeline makes our mission to support the workers and business impacted in the interim all that much more important, to ensure they get what's needed between now and the channel's opening," he said in a statement.

The Port of Baltimore also issued a statement in response to the development, stating they thank all those working "around the clock" to get it up and running again while reminding the public to keep the six construction workers who died in the collapse in their thoughts.