Dali departs Baltimore for first time since bridge collapse, heads to Virginia

BALTIMORE — The ship that launched multiple federal inquiries and knocked down an iconic Baltimore structure is on its way out of town.

Three months after it crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge and sent the span tumbling into the Patapsco River, the 984-foot Dali container ship began slowly sailing under its own power — assisted by four tugboats — just before 8:30 a.m. Monday to Norfolk, Virginia. After a trip of 16 to 20 hours, the Dali will tie up to unload all of its containers and receive more extensive repairs.

With a tarp covering a hole in the bow, the ship departed the Port of Baltimore’s Seagirt Marine Terminal and then turned right to follow the federal shipping channel. Marine tracking data indicated the ship was traveling at roughly 7 knots (8 mph) shortly after 9 a.m.

Traffic on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge near Annapolis will be halted for roughly 15 to 30 minutes between 11 a.m. and noon, the Maryland Transportation Authority said on social media. To avoid distracting drivers, the transportation authority sometimes halts traffic on the Bay Bridge when vessels of high public interest sail underneath.