Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Private Limited, the Singaporean corporations that owned and operated the cargo ship that destroyed Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key bridge, will pay $102 million to resolve a civil claim for costs incurred by the disaster, collapse, recovery and implosion.
The settlement announced by the Department of Justice on Thursday comes after the two Singaporean firms attempted to rely on an 1851 law that capped its liability at $44 million in the aftermath of the costly catastrophe. The disaster occurred last March, when the Dali motor vessel left the Port of Baltimore and set a course for Sri Lanka. As it sailed through the Fort McHenry Channel, the vessel struggled to maintain and then regain full power, before ramming into the bridge. Within seconds, the Baltimore Bridge collapsed and ultimately killed six people. The shipwreck and what was left of the bridge then blocked the channel, bringing shipping in and out of the port to a gridlock. The disaster also cut off a highway, blocking commuters.
“Nearly seven months after one of the worst transportation disasters in recent memory, which claimed six lives and caused untold damage, we have reached an important milestone with today’s settlement,” said Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer.
“Thanks to the hard work of the Justice Department attorneys since day one of this disaster, we were able to secure this early settlement of our claim, just over one month into litigation. This resolution ensures that the costs of the federal government’s cleanup efforts in the Fort McHenry Channel are borne by Grace Ocean and Synergy and not the American taxpayer.”
According to the DOJ, nearly 50,000 tons of steel, concrete, and asphalt had to be removed from the channel in the recovery response. The Justice Department filed its civil claim on Sept. 18, in Maryland District Court. The fine doesn’t include damages for rebuilding the bridge and Maryland state attorneys filed their own claim to recover damages.
“This is a tremendous outcome that fully compensates the United States for the costs it incurred in responding to this disaster and holds the owner and operator of the DALI accountable,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The prompt resolution of this matter also avoids the expense associated with litigating this complex case for potentially years.”
In April, the two firms had taken action to shield themselves from liability, citing the Limitation of Liability Act of 1851, according to Lawrence Brennan, a professor of admiralty and international maritime law at Fordham University School of Law in New York who spoke to Fortune at the time. The move was aimed at limiting its liability for the post-casualty value of the ship. Ultimately, it appears to have been unsuccessful.
“Thanks to the hard work of the Justice Department attorneys since day one of this disaster, we were able to secure this early settlement of our claim, just over one month into litigation,” said Mizer. “This resolution ensures that the costs of the federal government’s cleanup efforts in the Fort McHenry Channel are borne by Grace Ocean and Synergy and not the American taxpayer.”