The US Justice Department said on May 12 a grand jury indicted two companies and an individual in the March 2024 crash of the 300m cargo ship Dali that destroyed Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, killing six construction workers and destroying the span.
The Justice Department said the collision caused billions of dollars in damage and significant environmental damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found a single loose wire in the electrical system caused a breaker to unexpectedly open, launching a sequence of events that led to two vessel blackouts and a loss of propulsion and steering.
Synergy Marine, based in Singapore, and Synergy Maritime, based in Chennai, India, along with Radhakrishnan Karthik Nair, 47, an Indian national who worked for both companies as the technical superintendent for the Dali, were charged with conspiracy to defraud the US and with causing the death of six construction workers on the bridge, among other charges. Prosecutors said Nair is believed to be in India.
The companies and Nair are also charged with providing false statements and documents to the NTSB.
The two Synergy corporations were charged with violations of the Clean Water Act, Oil Pollution Act, and Refuse Act for the discharge of pollutants into the Patapsco River.
According to the indictment, the Dali lost power twice in a four-minute span as it was leaving the Port of Baltimore, causing it to crash into the Key Bridge.
The Justice Department said the defendants are accused of relying on a flushing pump to supply fuel to two of the Dali’s four generators but the flushing pump was not designed to automatically restart following a blackout, and the Dali’s generators could not operate without a fuel supply.
The indictment alleges that if the Dali was using proper fuel supply pumps, the vessel would have regained power in time to safely navigate under the bridge.
REUTERS
