Ship tangled in steel, no way out: How stuck Indian crew are faring

EVEN FROM miles away, the destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore is a jarring visual: Chunks of steel jut above the water like metallic icebergs. Twisted gray beams protrude in crooked positions. From a park near Fort Mchenry, visitors can see the giant cargo ship that struck the bridge and remains lodged in the wreckage.

Less visible, however, are the 22 crew members from India who have remained on the ship, named the Dali, since the disaster on Tuesday.

Little is publicly known about them other than that they are seafarers who embarked on a journey aboard the 985-footlong cargo ship that was on its way to Sri Lanka, carrying 4,700 shipping containers, when it lost power and struck the Key Bridge, causing the structure to collapse.

Since the accident, the crew members have found themselves in an unexpected spotlight. While keeping the ship operable, they are answering a deluge of questions from officials investigating the nighttime catastrophe, as the evidence of what occurred lies around them in mangled ruins.

While officials investigate what could have caused the tragedy, another question has emerged this week: What could the crew members, who have limited access to the world, be going through right now?

“They must feel this weight of responsibility that they couldn’t stop it from happening,” said Joshua Messick, the executive director of the Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center, a religious nonprofit that seeks to protect the rights of mariners.

Even so, officials have praised the crew’s swift mayday message that was transmitted over the radio as the ship lost power on Tuesday. Before the Dali struck the bridge, traveling at a rapid eight knots, the mayday call helped police officers stop traffic from heading onto the bridge, most likely saving many lives, the authorities said.

As the ship remains stuck in the Port of Baltimore, the lives of the crew members have entered an uncertain phase. But one thing is certain: They will no longer cruise through the sea around South africa toward their destination in Sri Lanka anytime soon.

But they are not going to imminently dock at the port either, as they must wait for enough debris to be cleared to free the ship and reopen the channel.

So, for now, crew members are most likely working a grueling schedule to maintain the ship that is similar to the one they would be if they were out at sea. The difference, though, is that they are in an immobile state as the eyes of the world fixate on them, experts said.

But there is still no exact timeline for when the ship might be extracted from the wreckage, Chris James who works for a consulting firm assisting the ship’s management company, Synergy Marine, said.

India is one of the world’s largest hubs for seafarers.

With so many questions still unanswered about the crew members’ next steps, Messick said he was eager to provide them with trauma care and emotional support.

On Friday, he wrote a letter to the captain, which was delivered by another vessel. “We’re here to support you,” it read.

AP Workers start to remove a section of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on Saturday.