The president of United States, Joe Bidenannounced this Tuesday that it will present a proposal to Congress for the federal government to assume the cost of repairing the Francis Scott Key BridgeBaltimore, hours after a freighter collided with it, causing it to collapse.

“My intention is that the federal government pays the entire cost of reconstruction of that bridge. I hope that Congress supports this proposal,” said the head of the White House in a brief appearance, in which he also thanked the efforts of the authorities and rescue services.

Biden has also pointed out that there are no indications that the Francis Scott Key bridge accident was intentional and has stressed that his Administration will do everything possible to counteract what happened. He has also noted that he has been in contact with local authorities and has promised that he will visit Baltimore.”as fast as you can“.

According to the latest information, the freighter ‘Dali’ warned shortly before impacting the bridge that it was suffering from technical problems, which allowed the authorities in the area to cut off car traffic on the Patapsco River and there were only eight vehicles. on the structure when it collapsed.

At the time of the collapse there was eight people crossing the bridge, two of whom have been found alive in the river and taken to a hospital. The search for the other six continues.

The consequences of the collapse

The blockade of the port of Baltimore caused by the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge will have serious economic consequences. Baltimore is one of the main US ports in the Atlantic, with a transit in 2023 of 80 billion dollars of merchandise coming from abroad, being the fastest route to the Midwest of the country and also the most important for automobile transportation.

In a statement, the port authority announced that “vessel traffic to or from the Port of Baltimore has been suspended until further notice“, although he added that his facilities continue processing trucks at the terminals.

“Right now We do not know how long ship traffic will be suspended“added the statement. The suspension of traffic since the freighter Deli collided with one of the pillars of the Francis Scott Key bridge early on Tuesday, causing the collapse of several sections of the infrastructure, is already causing logistical problems to a large extent. from the country.

For now, dozens of vessels heading to Baltimore have had to anchor in Chesapeake Bay or redirect to other ports. Maritime traffic data shows accumulations of vessels in nearby ports such as Annapolis, where at least 12 boats appeared anchored in its vicinity. Local media indicated that cruise companies such as Norwegian Cruise Line have already begun to look for alternatives for their ships. For example, Carnival Cruise Line was scheduled to arrive in Baltimore on Sunday. But the alternatives in some cases are limited.

The port, the sixteenth busiest in the United States, is only one of three on the American East Coast where the world’s largest freighters can dock and has five public and 12 private terminals, dedicated to transportation, among other products, coal, containers, steel, pulp and automobiles. In 2023, a record number of passengers transited through the port of Baltimore. 52.3 million tons of cargo coming from abroad with a value of 80,000 million dollars, 7.6% more than in 2022.