The Dali tragedy: a massive container ship that collided with the Frederick Scott Key bridge and the Patapsco River in Baltimore (Md.)

In the early hours of Tuesday morning, the global supply chain and US coastal infrastructure collided in the worst possible way. An enormous container ship, the Dali, slammed into a support of the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore, crumpling its central span into the Patapsco River and cutting off the city’s port from the Atlantic Ocean. Eighteen hours later, at approximately 7:30 pm Tuesday evening, rescuers called off a search, with six missing people presumed dead.

Logistical companies can use alternative routes for ships and trucks to cross the river. Two tunnels traverse the Patapsco and could take some of the goods and people that once traveled across the Key Bridge, which was also part of Maryland Route 695. Many goods usually handled in Baltimore by nearby ports such as Norfolk in Virginia, Philadelphia in Pennsylvania and Savannah in Georgia should be able to be taken by nearby ports.

The shipping picture is going to get more complex as time goes on. Ships haul big, heavy goods in large quantities across oceans, albeit relatively slowly—meaning changes to their routes and destinations can add a lot of time to a journey. A lot of people screaming for their supplies when a ship is holding up in traffic can be caused by a holdup.

The supply chain management expert at Northeastern University says that everybody is saying that it will be fine. “If this lasts a while, it’s not going to be fine. It is going to affect prices.

The bridge was destroyed, which shows that boats are getting bigger. Trade transport volume across the seas has tripled in the past three decades. The large ship is indicative of the ballooning shipping industry.

The growth of boats is down to simple economics: The more goods you can cram onto a ship, the more you save on costs. “The amount of cargo has increased tremendously,” says Zal Phiroz, a supply chain analyst at UC San Diego. This was affected a lot by Covid, and afterwards as well. The price of containers jumped as well as the cargo prices. Everything went through the roof.

The Francis Scott Key Bridge Collapse: Implications for Baltimore, the Port and the East Coast, and its Potential for Interim-Port Solutions

Four men are presumed to have been dead when the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed after being hit by a cargo ship.

They made sure to emphasize the fact that they were adapting. GM says it’s making changes to deliveries. Stellantis is working on “contingency plans.” Mercedes says it has options. Mazda has not yet made a decision about alternatives to this important port. But it’s not easy.

That’s because rerouting an imported vehicle is a lot more complicated than redirecting a shipping container. Not every port has the ability to unload the ro-ro ships that carry vehicles.

That all happens at a port facility that’s typically built right next to where the ships unload, and it’s a big reason why the vessels can’t be sent just anywhere — even if you can get them off the ship at another port, who’s going to install the subwoofers and finalize the window sticker?

The Tradepoint Atlantic terminal is located at the mouth of the harbor, before the Francis Scott Key Bridge. Volkswagen and BMW operate there, and as a result, those two automakers expect no impacts from the disaster. The ship with Volkswagens arrived on Wednesday, and was able to dock.

Tradepoint Atlantic says its operation is “well equipped to handle additional levels of [vehicle] cargo. Plans to accept redirected cargo are underway, including the ability to handle the increased capacity.”

“Our thoughts are with all of those impacted by this collapse,” Bethann Rooney, port director, said in a statement, adding that the port “is proactively working with our industry partners to respond as needed and ensure supply chain continuity along the East Coast.”

Those two options would also have a benefit for Baltimore as the city reels from the loss of a crucial bridge. They would allow port jobs to continue, while waterways are blocked, to boost the local economy.

For instance, Brunswick in Georgia is the second busiest port for vehicles after Baltimore — and Mercedes and Subaru, which import many vehicles through Baltimore, also have large processing operations there.

The port has been contacted by companies asking if it could be an interim solution when the Baltimore port is partially blocked and the port has excess capacity to process 200,000 vehicles per year.