National Transportation Safety Board officials boarded the ship to recover information from its electronics and paperwork and to interview the captain and other crew members, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said during a separate news conference. Twenty-three people, including two pilots, were on the ship when it crashed, she said.
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The vessel was also carrying 56 containers of hazardous materials including corrosives, flammables and lithium ion batteries, Homendy said. She added that some containers were breached, and that a sheen on the water from those materials would be handled by authorities.
Marcel Muise, NTSB investigator in charge, laid out a preliminary timeline assembled from the voyage data recorder comprising audio from the bridge and VHF radio ahead of the crash, which federal and state officials have said appeared to be an accident.
The vessel, the Dali, left port at 12:39 a.m. Tuesday and, after it entered the channel, signs of trouble came at about 1:25 a.m. when numerous alarms sounded, according to the NTSB. About a minute later, steering commands and rudder orders were issued, and at 1:26 a.m. and 39 seconds, a pilot made a general radio call for nearby tug boats.
Maryland Transportation Authority data from about the same time shows the pilot association dispatcher called the transportation authority’s officer on duty about the blackout, the NTSB said.
Just after 1:27 a.m., the pilot commanded the ship to drop an anchor on the left side of the ship and issued added steering commands. About 20 seconds later, the pilot issued a radio call reporting that the Dali had lost all power approaching the bridge.
At about that time, the state transportation officer on duty radioed two of its units already stationed at each end of the bridge saying to close the bridge to vehicle traffic. They were already there because of the construction.
Around 1:29 a.m., when the ship was traveling at about 8 mph (13 kph), recordings for about 30 seconds picked up sounds consistent with it colliding with the bridge, the NTSB said. A Transportation Authority dash camera also shows lights on the bridge going out.
At 1:29 a.m. and 39 seconds, the pilot reported to the Coast Guard that the bridge was down.
Muise said experts will review the entire voyage data recording and develop a detailed transcript.
At least eight people initially went into the water when the ship struck the bridge column, and two of them were rescued Tuesday, officials said.
One thing I didn’t hear them say, that they were interviewing the mechanics that worked on the ship to attempt to fix the electrical problems the ship had in port.
This Bridge is Named in Honor of
FRANCIS SCOTT KEY
Author of The Star Spangled Banner
September 14, 1814
"Then Conquer We Must for Our Cause It Is Just
and This Be Our Motto: 'In God Is Our Trust.'"
Erected by The National Society
United States Daughters of 1812 * April 21, 1924