Key Bridge collapse: First large ships leaves Port of Baltimore using deeper temporary channel

Several vessels also were headed toward Baltimore’s port as of Thursday morning, according to the tracking website VesselFinder. They included Strategic Tenacity, which stopped south of the Bay Bridge and was approached by a pilot boat a little after 8 a.m. but was then at anchor, and Frisian Ocean, a cargo ship that had been at anchor south of the Bay Bridge for several days.

Other that might arrive in the coming days include the Fu Quan Shan, which is in Bermuda but reports an estimated arrival in Baltimore late Saturday, and Lake Wanaka, a vehicle carrier near Canada estimated to arrive in Baltimore on Sunday.

About half the vessels handled at Baltimore’s port could use a 35-foot channel, said Richard Scher, a spokesman for the Maryland Port Administration.

But “the criteria for vessels set by the Coast Guard to come through the channel remains fluid, including weight and beam limits,” he said.

Here’s more of what we know:

—The nonmilitary vessels trapped behind the wreckage have been berthed around the harbor from Seagirt Marine Terminal and the Canton industrial waterfront to a coal pier in Curtis Bay.

—Two of the stranded ships likely need to wait before they can leave, based on their required draft depth, including the bulk carrier Klara Oldendorf, sailing under the flag of Madeira, and the coal carrier JY River, sailing under the flag of Liberia. Both need a nearly 50-foot channel to sail when loaded.

—Others that have been stuck in port but may be able to depart include the Palanca Rio — an oil/chemical tanker sailing under the flag of the Marshall Islands and the Phatra Naree — a bulk carrier sailing under the flag of Thailand.

—The Carmen, owned by Wallenius Wilhelmsen, needs 37 feet of water when fully loaded but was able to depart using the new channel.

The Norway-based shipping line said earlier this month that it estimates a monthlong financial impact in the range of $5 million to $10 million from the Carmen being stuck in Baltimore. Cargo operations were completed at the port before the bridge fell, and the Carmen and crew of about 20 were prepared to sail, the company said at the time.

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