Engineers are scheduled Sunday to set off controlled explosives in the steel remains of the Francis Scott Key Bridge to help remove the debris from the freighter that crashed in March.
The explosives will split a large section of truss at specific locations to allow “salvors to use cranes and barges already on scene to remove these sections of the bridge and ultimately remove the MV Dali from the channel,” Unified Command, the group in charge of the recovery and salvage operations, said in a statement.
Salvors with the Unified Command prepare charges for upcoming precision cuts to remove section 4 from the port side of the bow of the M/V DALI, April 21, 2024, during the Key Bridge Response 2024.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers photo by Christopher Rosario
“By using precision cuts, we reduce risks to our personnel and can safely and efficiently continue clearing the channel for the Port of Baltimore,” Capt. David O’Connell, the Key Bridge Response federal on-scene coordinator, said in a statement.
Officials said hearing protection will not be required outside of a 2,000-yard radius of the site.
Salvors with the Unified Command prepare charges for upcoming precision cuts to remove section 4 from the port side of the bow of the M/V DALI, April 21, 2024, during the Key Bridge Response 2024.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers photo by Christopher Rosario
“Sound levels outside of the noise radius will be no louder than a standard fireworks show and will last two to five seconds,” Unified Command said.
A cellphone alert will go out to residents warning them about the explosion, Unified Command said.
The freighter has been stuck in the location ever since it slammed into the bridge during the early morning hours on March 26 after the vessel experienced a malfunction.
Body camera footage of the incident, which was released Friday by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources in response to a public records request by ABC News, shows officers getting an up-close look at the location where the bridge once stood.
Wreckage removal is ongoing on the M/V DALI to prepare to refloat and remove the vessel from the Fort McHenry Federal Navigation Channel, April 21, 2024.
Christopher Rosario/U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District
“There is no bridge,” an officer can be heard saying. “The whole center span is gone completely. It’s in the water.”
Another officer reported encountering a “large debris field” with containers on the side of the river closest to Baltimore. In one video, he can be heard shouting toward the freighter to ask if anyone was hurt. Someone aboard the ship responded that their finger was cut.
The bridge suffered a near-total collapse and caused massive logistical delays in the Port of Baltimore. Six construction workers who were on the bridge at the time were killed in the incident.
Salvors with the Unified Command prepare charges for upcoming precision cuts to remove section 4 from the port side of the bow of the M/V DALI, May 7, 2024, during the Key Bridge Response 2024.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers photo by Christopher Rosario
The incident is still under investigation and the recovery efforts are ongoing.
ABC News’ Jared Kofsky and Josh Margolin contributed to this report.
