MD Officials Reveal Timeline, Cost Estimate To Rebuild Key Bridge

BALTIMORE, MD — A Maryland transportation official said it will take just over four years to rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge after it collapsed into the Patapsco River, according to an Associated Press report.

The state plans to build a new span by the fall of 2028, Maryland Department of Transportation spokesman David Broughton told The Associated Press. He also said it will likely cost anywhere from $1.7 billion to $1.9 billion to rebuild the span after the container ship Dali lost power and slammed into one of the bridge's support columns.

Detailed engineering specifics have not been confirmed.

The March 26 collision with the massive ship sent a span of the bridge plummeting into the frigid river below, blocking access to the harbor and halting most maritime traffic through the city’s port.

A road crew was on the bridge patching potholes on I-695 overnight when the collision happened. Five workers were killed and another one is presumed dead as authorities continue to search for his body.

Crews on Wednesday recovered the body of the fifth victim, identified as 49-year-old Miguel Angel Luna Gonzalez of Glen Burnie. Luna migrated from El Salvador 19 years ago.

Salvage teams spotted one of the missing construction vehicles underwater and notified the Maryland Department of State Police. Authorities said they found Gonzalez inside a red truck.

• RELATED: 5th Key Bridge Victim Found Dead In Baltimore, Identified As Glen Burnie Road Worker

The fourth victim's body was recovered on April 14. At the family's request, officials have not yet released that victim's name.

Divers on April 5 pulled the body of a third missing road crew worker, 38-year-old Maynor Yasir Suazo-Sandoval of northwestern Honduras.

Salvage and demolition crews are still working around the clock to clear wreckage from the collapse site. They’re now focused primarily on freeing the Dali from a massive steel span that came crashing down on the ship’s bow.

That will allow the ship to be refloated and guided back into the Port of Baltimore. It will also allow most maritime traffic to resume through the busy East Coast port.

On Thursday morning, crews were preparing for a controlled demolition that will break down the largest remaining span and send it tumbling into the water. Then a massive hydraulic grabber will lift the resulting sections of steel onto barges.

The hydraulic grabber, which officials have called the largest in the country, was also in motion Thursday morning. Moving ever so slowly, the giant claw descended into the depths of the Patapsco River and emerged with a steel beam in its trusses. It was operating in tandem with the Chesapeake 1000, one of the largest cranes on the Eastern Seaboard.

Meanwhile, the broker for the bridge’s insurance policy confirmed Thursday that a $350 million payout will be made to the state of Maryland in what is expected to be the first of many payouts related to the collapse.

Chubb, the company that insured the bridge, is preparing to make the $350 million payment, according to WTW, the broker. Douglas Menelly, a spokesperson for WTW, on Thursday confirmed plans for the payout, which was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

“We expect the full property policy to be paid very shortly,” the Maryland Transportation Authority said in a news release.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Read all of Patch's Key Bridge collapse coverage here.