MPA: Unified Command prepares for opening of temporary alternate channel around Key Bridge wreckage for commercially essential vessels

BALTIMORE – The Captain of the Port (COTP) is preparing to establish a temporary alternate channel on the northeast side of the main channel in the vicinity of the Francis Scott Key Bridge for commercially essential vessels.

“This will mark an important first step along the road to reopening the port of Baltimore,” said Capt. David O’Connell, Federal On-Scene Coordinator, Key Bridge Response 2024. “By opening this alternate route, we will support the flow of marine traffic into Baltimore.”

This action is part of a phased approach to opening the main channel. The temporary channel will be marked with government lighted aids to navigation and will have a controlling depth of 11 feet, a 264-foot horizontal clearance, and vertical clearance 96 feet.

Continue reading this and more updates on the Key Bridge from the MPA here.

Maryland to Plant 41 Acres with Juvenile Oysters in Anne Arundel County with Mitigation Funds from 2022 Ever Forward Ship Grounding

Photo courtesy National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will plant about 147 million oyster spat, or juvenile oysters, on 41 acres in Anne Arundel County waters with mitigation funds from the 2022 grounding of M/V Ever Forward on an upper Chesapeake Bay oyster bar.

On March 13, 2022, the 1,095-foot Ever Forward container ship ran aground inside Natural Oyster Bar 4-2. The bow of the ship, which draws 40 feet of water, became stuck at a depth of 18 feet. The Ever Forward was refloated on April 17, 2022, after a month of intensive dredging and multiple extraction attempts.

Continue reading on the Maryland Department of Natural Resources website…

A Behemoth of a Boat Reminds Baltimore How it Came to Be

Published August 22, 2023, Baltimore Brew

The weekend layover of the Evergreen Line’s Ever Max, the biggest container ship ever to dock on Maryland shores, brought to mind why Baltimore is Baltimore and why its harbor is more than a recreational playground for paddle boats and cabin cruisers.

Founded in 1729, the city remains a hub of global trade thanks to 11.1 square miles of mostly deep water that lie within its boundaries.

For most residents, it’s an unknown or underappreciated fact that the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore handled a record $74.3 billion in foreign cargo last year.

Other high-water marks were established in 2022 for roll-on/roll-off (“Ro-Ro”) farm and construction equipment, general cargo and forest products despite worldwide supply chain issues and a slowdown in China trade.

“The port ranks 11th among major U.S. ports for foreign cargo handled and ninth for total foreign cargo value,” notes Richard Scher, spokesman for the Maryland Port Administration.

Expanding business was one reason why Ever Max made its appearance on Saturday to swap out containers at the sprawling Seagirt Marine Terminal on Broening Highway.

Continue Reading Here from The Baltimore Brew