Maryland Governor Urges Congress to Fund Bridge Rebuild
With efforts underway to clean up thousands of tons of steel debris from the collapsed bridge in Baltimore's harbor, Maryland Governor Wes Moore on Sunday urged Republicans to work with Democrats to approve the federal funding needed for rebuilding the bridge and to get the port economy back on its feet.Baltimore's Francis Scott Key bridge collapsed early on Tuesday morning, killing six road workers, when a container ship nearly the size of the Eiffel Tower lost power and crashed into a support pylon.
Mississippi River Restrictions Lifted
Coast Guard Captain of the Port Captain Sharon Richey, commanding officer of Coast Guard Sector Upper Mississippi River, issued an order today lifting the restrictions on vessel traffic transit through the affected area of the Mississippi River at the Interstate 35 Bridge collapse site here. The bridge was closed at mile marker 853.2, due to salvage and debris removal operations. All mariners are urged to exercise extreme caution when transiting this area and to monitor marine channel 16 for future river updates.
Mississippi River Reopens
The U.S. Coast Guard and Army Corps of Engineers has given the all-clear for boat traffic at the I-35W bridge collapse site. Boats of all shapes and sizes can return to parts of the river that had been off-limits for two months. For the past few weeks, barges were allowed through the area on a limited schedule. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers did a sweep of the river bottom and found no obstacles or debris that could damage boats. So the locks and dams in that area are now open to pleasure cruises and recreation boats. Even though investigators removed most of the debris from the water, you can still see large pieces of the bridge by the shore. Authorities are asking boaters to stay away from these areas.
