Tens of thousands of ships sailed under the Francis Scott Key Bridge during its 47 years, and the Dali’s transit on March 26, 2024, didn’t figure to be any different. As the vessel’s command center prepared to depart Baltimore, light music played over a Bluetooth speaker.

Casual conversation — the Indian captain asked a Maryland-based pilot about the upcoming Easter holiday — turned to panicked profanities as the ship lost its ability to maneuver.

Police officers blocked vehicles from the doomed Key Bridge just in time; the last one, the cab of a truck, safely drove off 31 seconds before it collapsed. But seven construction workers on the bridge received no warning. One survived the fall, but six were killed.

Thursday marks the tragedy’s two-year anniversary.

Since then, the National Transportation Safety Board cited a series of issues that led to the preventable disaster, and a trove of attorneys are preparing for a civil trial this June with billions of dollars at stake. Meanwhile, the state of Maryland has begun one of its most ambitious transportation projects.

Jonathan Daniels executive director of the Maryland Port Administration, began a recent public meeting with a nod to that day.

“In so many ways it feels like it was a long time ago,” he said, “and in other ways, it feels like it was yesterday.”

Ramps to nowhere

The most glaring, tangible reminder of the disaster are the eerie bridge remnants.

Driving along the highway, or standing at Fort McHenry, two ramps-to-nowhere are visible above the Patapsco River.

Commuters impatiently awaiting a new bridge see them as a sign of lack of progress. State officials, however, say that bridge construction is on a different timeline than demolition, since the new span will be built 260 feet east of the old one.

A timeline for the removal of the remaining structures is still undefined — but it could take a while.

Leaving them up for now could cut costs because some of the same heavy equipment used for construction can be used for demolition, said Maryland Transportation Authority Chief Engineer Jim Harkness.

“While it’s here, it can just turn around, essentially, and demo the former bridge,” Harkness said.

Escalating costs

The new bridge was initially projected to be completed in 2028 and cost under $2 billion — but is now slated to open by the end of 2030 with a price that’s more than doubled.

Within the next few months, the state and its builder, Kiewit, will nail down a precise cost. If they can’t agree, the state could identify another contractor.

“We’re going to negotiate in good faith, and hopefully come to that agreement and then roll right into” the next phase, Harkness said.

A flotilla of vessels has formed a floating construction site, with more heavy machinery, such as massive hammers and cranes, to come.

Still, progress is not easy to spot.

Crews have scouted the river bottom and hammered in piles — long, skinny steel tubes that will form the bridge foundation — that protrude a few feet above the waterline.

Before the bulk of the project, workers must complete a smaller task: building wooden trestles, structures that resemble fishing piers. Those platforms will enable crews to bring trucks, machinery and materials closer to the rebuild site.

Pieces of steel are being trucked to land at Tradepoint Atlantic, the logistics hub at Sparrows Point, where workers weld them into longer rods. Those will form the foundation for the trestles.

Who pays?

Maryland received a $350 million insurance payout for its destroyed bridge, which has funded the beginning of the rebuild, according to state officials.

The federal government is expected to foot the rest of the bill, thanks to congressional action in 2024. President Donald Trump has pulled funding from other major federal projects, however, and publicly sparred with Gov. Wes Moore, calling into question whether he could do the same in Baltimore.

Moore and Trump administration Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy met in January and agreed that they want the bridge to be built faster. (Neither side specified any advanced timeline or measures that would be taken to do so.)

“That federal funding commitment is locked into law — and we will continue working with the Department of Transportation and our state partners until the job is done,” U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, said in a statement.

Maryland’s Transportation Secretary Kathryn “Katie” Thomson said this week that as long as the state mitigates cost as it builds a safe structure, she is “not concerned about the federal government paying what it is obligated to pay.”

“We will never take our eye off the ball,” she said of ensuring federal funding.

A trial worth billions

The bridge disaster is expected to be front and center this summer with a sprawling federal civil trial with billions at stake.

The state of Maryland, families of the victims, city government, Baltimore Gas and Electric and local business, among dozens of others, are suing the Dali’s owner and operator, Grace Ocean Private Ltd. and Synergy Marine Group, respectively. (The companies already settled a lawsuit with the Department of Justice, paying out $102 million.)

Beginning June 1, and likely lasting weeks, attorneys will argue in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, with Judge James K. Bredar presiding.

The Singaporean companies are seeking to cap their liability at $44 million — a fraction of the rebuild’s cost. If they aren’t successful, they could pay out billions.

The case could hinge on whether or not the Dali was seaworthy when it departed the Port of Baltimore and, if it was not, whether or not the companies had knowledge of its unseaworthiness.

“It may be the most important issue in the case,” said Charles Simmons Jr., who teaches maritime law at the University of Baltimore and University of Maryland law schools.

If the companies cannot limit their liability, the questions then become: How much do they owe? And to whom?

The vast majority of civil cases settle before trial, although this case is far from typical, Simmons said.

The NTSB has already examined what caused the collapse, flagging a series of errors including a loose wire on the ship — but that hardly settles the matter.

The state has continuously pointed the finger at the shipping companies for shoddy operations. Grace Ocean and Synergy have argued that the state of Maryland should have better protected its bridge.

Attorneys cannot cite the NTSB’s “probable cause” findings, but they can use evidence gathered by the agency, providing plenty of fodder for each side.

Maryland could also face lawsuits down the road, according to documents obtained by The Banner in an open records request.

Families of the victims, local business owners and residents saying the collapse “shook our homes” are among those who have submitted notice to the state indicating that they might sue.

Banner reporter Daniel Zawodny contributed to this story.