The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore after it was hit by a cargo vessel in the early hours of Tuesday has paused shipping at the city's main port, potentially leading to losses of $9 million a day, a supply chain expert told Newsweek.
The vessel, the Dali, was heading to Colombo, Sri Lanka, when it struck a column of the bridge causing it to collapse into the Patapsco River.
More than 847,000 vehicles came through the port last year, according to Maryland state data. It ranked first in the nation in the import and export of automobiles, light trucks and construction materials. It is also ranked second in the country in the coal exports. In 2022, it was ranked sixth in coffee imports—around 120,000 tons valued at nearly $610 million.
The port is a key economic contributor to the economy of Baltimore, responsible for more than 15,000 jobs and generating $2.6 billion in business income to the state. It is host to 50 ocean carriers that make about 1,800 trips a year, state data shows.
On Tuesday, during a press conference, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said that shipping was suspended for the time being and the focus was on the search and rescue of those who were impacted by the bridge's collapse.
The halt in shipping to and from the port may lead to losses of close to $9 million for every day that it is shut down, according to Patrick Penfield, a professor of supply chain practice at Syracuse University.
"It's going to be a major disruption for a lot of supply chains on the East Coast, specifically the automobile industry," he told Newsweek. "A lot of Midwest manufacturing companies, they utilize that port to ship in and ship out materials. So, without the port actually being available, it's going to cause some major issues."
Authorities have said that there were about eight construction workers on the bridge who fell into the water upon the structure's collapse and that six remained unaccounted for.
Moore told reporters that the ship had issued a mayday alert which helped stop more traffic coming over the bridge. Typically, more than 30,000 vehicles a day use the route, according to local officials.
Penfield suggested that the port's closure will force shipments to be rerouted to other locations, such as the Port of New York and New Jersey or the Port of Savannah in Georgia. However, it could take at least two weeks for the shift to fully take effect, he said.
"It's just going to cause issues from a timing standpoint for the supply chain," Penfield told Newsweek. "So lead times will be delayed, it'll just be, again, just very difficult."
The full economic effect of the port's closure will depend on how fast authorities can repair the bridge. The Francis Scott Key Bridge became operational in 1977 and took five years to build at an estimated cost of more than $60 million at the time.
President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that the U.S. federal government was prepared to fund the reconstruction.
"It's my intention that the federal government will pay for the entire cost of reconstructing that bridge," Biden told reporters.
"Once they can clear the port, that area, that passageway, then commerce will happen in regards to shipping and that would free things up," Penfield said. "It's just, again, it's just going to cause delays and issues with tractor trailers and trying to move things in and out of that particular area."
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Omar Mohammed is a Newsweek reporter based in the Greater Boston area. His focus is reporting on the Economy and ... Read more
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