In the post-midnight darkness of March 26, as their ship lost power and crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge, the crew of the cargo ship Dali could only imagine the scope of the catastrophe unfolding.
“I understand several of them ran forward looking for survivors,” said Barbara Shipley, the mid-Atlantic inspector for a global federation that represents seafarers.
Soon, they and the rest of the world would learn that there were construction workers repairing potholes on the bridge that collapsed almost immediately upon the ship’s impact. While police were able to clear traffic from the bridge, they ran out of time before the construction workers could be alerted; six men were killed.
Aboard the Dali, the crew felt “helpless and sorrowful,” said Shipley, of the International Transport Workers’ Federation. “When I spoke to the crew, they expressed sadness for the loss of life,” she said.
Shipley joined representatives of two Singapore-based unions to visit the Dali crew on April 24. The Dali sails under the Singapore flag.
They and others who have spoken with crew say some members have been distressed, particularly since their cellphones were confiscated by the FBI on April 15 as part of one of multiple investigations into the bridge collapse.
Stranded in the Patapsco River, they are in the midst of what has been a massive rescue, recovery and salvage operations, surrounded by cranes, barges and other vessels. While they have received replacement phones, they don’t have the photos and other information, such as for online banking, that were on their original devices, say those who represent and advocate for them.
“While some crew members are coping, morale has understandably dipped,” according to a statement from the Singapore Maritime Officers’ Union and the Singapore Organisation of Seamen that The Baltimore Sun received ahead of a public release planned for Monday.
The crew members fear they’ll be “criminalized” over the incident, the two Singapore-based unions said.
Salvage crews are expected to set off controlled explosives Monday evening to break apart a massive piece of the Key Bridge that landed on the Dali, allowing them to remove the wreckage and eventually refloat the ship and return it to the Port of Baltimore.
Shipley said it took a moment or two when she approached the vessel to take in the damage.
“It was overwhelming to see the devastation so closely and remembering that lives were lost,” Shipley said in an interview Sunday with The Sun.
The ITF is an umbrella group whose nearly 700 affiliates are based in about 150 countries and include the Singapore unions.
Shipley and the Singapore-based representatives were joined on in their statement by other unions that similarly advocate for seafarers and other transportation workers.
Saying the crew cooperated fully with an ongoing FBI investigation of the bridge collapse, the unions are calling for the return of the members’ cellphones. The FBI could not be reached for comment Sunday, but when asked last week about the crews’ cellphones, the agency’s Baltimore office declined to comment.
“However long the investigation takes, the crew’s rights and welfare should not be infringed upon during its course,” said David Heindel, president of the Seafarers International Union. “We call on the authorities to be mindful that seafarers utilize mobile devices to conduct personal business for bill payments and more importantly, transfer money to their home country to sustain families.”
Additionally, the unions are asking for officials to arrange for shore leave for the crew once the ship returns to port, as their visas expired while they’ve been stranded. The unions also want crew members to receive expedited travel back home once they’re no longer needed for the investigation.
“They need some time off for their mental health and to refresh their minds,” Shipley said.
Synergy Marine, the Dali’s management company, has a mental health program that reached out to both the crew and their families, the unions said in their statement.
“The crew members have been one of our top priorities,” said Darrell Wilson, a spokesperson for Synergy. “This is a difficult time for them, too.”
Wilson said crew members have received visits from their embassies, those of India and Sri Lanka, as well as from seafarer assistance groups that have brought clergy aboard.
The crew has had to remain on board throughout, even though the ship has been immobilized, he said, and members have been assisting the salvage operation.
“It’s still a very complicated piece of equipment that needs to be maintained,” Wilson said. “No one knows the ship better than the crew.”
The seamen’s unions said the crew has been treated well by the company and agencies that have responded to the incident.
“We commend the U.S. Coast Guard and ground personnel for their empathy towards the crew, who have been cooperative throughout this ordeal,” their statement says.
In addition to the FBI, the National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the incident and has interviewed the crew on board the Dali.
Gwee Guo Duan, assistant general secretary of the officers’ union, said in an email to The Sun that when in Baltimore, his group also visited Key Bridge Unified Command. That’s the multiagency effort directing operations to remove the bridge debris and the Dali and reopen the port to marine traffic.
“I do hope we can do something tangible for the seafarers to ensure they are treated with the respect and dignity they deserve,” he said. “It’s crucial to acknowledge that our seafarers play a vital role in moving the world, with 80% of cargo transportation being reliant on them.” The group shared a photo of Gwee and Chen Chuanyi, of the Singapore Organisation of Seamen, talking in the crew mess with more than a dozen people who wore orange or white jumpsuits that said “Synergy” on the back.
The statement included several officials of unions from around the world, calling for the return of the crew members’ phones and decrying what Mary Liew, general secretary of the officers’ union called a growing concern over “the criminalisation of seafarers based solely on their position on board a vessel during an incident.”
“Access to communications, especially with loved ones and family members, are essential for their well-being,” said Kam Soon Huat, president of the seamen’s organization.
The unions are the latest to express concern about the welfare of the crew, who are mostly from India.
The New York-based Seamen’s Church Institute said it was contacted by its shipping industry partners shortly after March 26 to provide support to the crew and received clearance within a week to board the vessel. It has been advocating for the crews’ cellphones to be returned.
The group has a network of chaplains who are specially trained in “critical incident stress management,” according to its website.
The church institute’s executive director, the Rev. Mark Nestlehutt, said it has sent personnel to respond to crises the world over, “making sure seafarers’ welfare is not being overlooked.”
After spending a day on board the Dali, the group returned with chaplains who speak several Indian languages and has also advocated for the return of the the crews’ phones.
Local assistance groups, the Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center and the Apostleship of the Sea, have also been looking out for the stranded crew, and say they will continue to do so after the Dali returns to the port.
