How Did the Baltimore Bridge Collapse - Animated
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- Опубліковано 4 лют 2025
- In this animated video, witness the shocking collapse of the Baltimore Bridge. From its construction to its ultimate failure, the video takes you through the events that led to the tragic incident. Using detailed animations, the video showcases the various factors that contributed to the collapse and answers questions such as: Why did the Francis Scott Key bridge collapse so quickly? Why did the ship lose power a few minutes after leaving the port? How long will it take to replace the bridge? With a focus on safety and engineering, this video serves as a cautionary tale for anyone interested in the topic and involved in the construction and maintenance of large-scale infrastructure projects.
Nice video, Its funny to see the cars moving backwards on the bridge. 6:36
Thanks to the power of editing, it's all possible 😂
Lol!! That I missed
6:16 It's Australia, they drive on the left side of roads there. I don't know why the video's creator felt a need to make it appear otherwise.
AI fear-porn
@@tobymichaels8171whoah whoah whoah
Excellent. I've been an Electrical Engineer for over 45 years, and it's so refreshing to see someone approach this issue from an engineer's and designer's perspective, with actual data rather than clueless clickbait. Thanks.
Support your industry is commendable. Why does this animation not show the last second right turn into the support? Accuracy of an engineer?
@@denveyebanks4787 In my personal opinion the loss of power on the ship was a consequence of a cyber attack. That's my opinion.
@@denveyebanks4787 Let us know when you've posted a video on your channel showing a better animation. Look forward to seeing it.
@@EETechStuff I don't post videos but I can tell you this one is NOT accurate.
@@anmihovil Not sure what it was but something is really fishy here. Smells like a rat, might be a rat.
Outstanding video and narration. Clearly an expert in the subject matter and a remarkable eye towards solutions. Good work.
As someone who grew up in the Greater DC Area I'm gonna say, this Bridge was part of my childhood.
I remember driving across it in 2015 (back when I was still in 4th Grade) when going to visit my cousins in Long Island in New York and that would be my first (and final) time crossing it.
Outstanding video. Highly informative and well-produced 😊
Well narrated, described, and animated! It's great that some young people continue to look at things rationally and have a level head when approaching huge disasters like this. Great video!
I still can't believe she's gone. The Key bridge was iconic. A big part of Baltimore. Seeing it gone from the horizon when I visit is so sad. I hope it gets rebuilt soon. 695 isn't complete without it
I live right down the street from this bridge. It still feels unreal that I can't cross it anymore. They're talking about it taking four years now.
Wonderful video. We can always analyze after the fact but not brfore. Never a problem until it becomes a problem. Great content
They were warned about the lack of pier protection in 1980. It was a problem 44 years ago.
Very good video.
Not to be argumentative, but for Tugs to have prevented this allision, (1) they would have needed to remain connected to the Dali past the bridge, and (2) the Speed of the Dali would need to be much less than it was moving at the time. At 8 knots the tugs would not have been able to prevent the Dali from hitting the bridge. At 2-3 knots they probably could have prevented the incident.
Good video, covering all the aspects of the incident.
When tugs are used they are connected and do all the steering and propulsion.
I heard the same from a tug operator
Agreed. And, in many cases, tug use is limited to increase TUG operator safety. Many tug operators die each year from accidents when tied to large vessels. So they don't stay attached any more than necessary.
So for the tugs to be effective, the ship would have to move much more slowly? That would also add to the cost by lengthening the journey out of the harbor.
@Robert08010: When the cargo ship was being pushed by the tug boats, it was moving at a slow speed managed by the tugs. Once the tugs separated from the ship, the ship powered up to speed to 8 knots. If the tugs had remained pushing the ship past the bridge before releasing the ship to run under its own power, the power outages would've had lesser consequences.
That ship shouldn't have been allowed to sail the sea because it was redflagged due to two previous incidents it was involved in the company knew that the ship wasn't safe for use but it was allowed to continue being in service.
Do not forget, the ship is run by Indians,,, everything is okay boss,,, their style
Yep. But the mentality is "Time is money." The course to Sri Lanka was already extended by many days to avoid a path through the Middle East. It had to go around Africa.
I wonder who will be held responsible.
The engines throttle up as seen by the black smoke? No sign of the wash from full astern thrust. So ship is on full power forwards? No dolphins so no protection. But from the other side there are puffs of smoke just as the ship hits. Look like cutting charges going off on pier. All very odd. No power no turn so why did it turn? Too many questions.
@@huangerli7215 actually many lives had been saved for those guys .. company owns ships , certainly no individual. This happened bcz of greedy officer
The bridge pillars were not protected by concrete dolphins. In my arrogant opinion that is the root cause.
I agree with you,,,those "Pilings" set maybe 100 yrds in front of the inbuttments didnt help,,, Those 4 skinny legs just crumbled
Trusting that all ships passing under the bridge would always miss the bridge itself? That's more 'asking for trouble' than anything else.
Remember kids, "Failure is mandatory. What happens after the failure is important." - after this ship lost power, this story could have ended "And the ship struck a concrete barrier, leaving it blocking the channel."
@@Relkond The law of maximum bad luck. If it can happen, it will happen. Guaranteed!
I totally agree, the existing dolphins are in the wrong position to deflect the wayward container ship.
@@Relkond Thats the whole idea,,,dont hit the bridge
A perfect storm of negligence and incompetency.
No clickbait
I love that if someone really needs a quick answer they can use the thumbnail… boat arrow bridge pillar
Great clip. Fellow Melburnian here.
Very well explained and animated. Thanks for this insight!
Thanks!
Thanks!
Thank you for speaking so fast. Because of the quick taking I stayed engaged and watched the entire video.
As a singaporean, I am terribly sorry for what happened.
Excellent production on all counts. Subbed.
This thing was the most talked about news ever and now it’s seven months later it’s been forgotten about by the way we used to cross that road all the time to head to Delaware
Excellent content 🎉! Well done 👏
Great video. As an aside. You might find it of interest to know that the place they are taking the bridge to be cut up and recycled is an area called Sparrows Point.
When the Francis Scott Key was being built Sparrows Point was home to a Bethlehem Steel steel mill and the Bethlehem Steel Sparrows Point Shipyard. Bethlehem Steel before, during, and after the construction of the bridge was building 70,000 DWT, 120,000 DWT, and 265,000 DWT tankers.
How could the engineers responsible for designing and building the bridge have not realized ships were growing in size? And, the dolphins and fendering being put in place were inadequate when compared to the ships being built at the shipyard next door.
Baltimore was told in 1980, shortly after the Sunshine Skyway collapse, the the FSK bridge protection was inadequate. They chose not to do anything for 44 years.
Actually, when the bridge was build, the deep channel was much narrower, and deep draft freighters restricted to the channel could not hit the support pillars - they would be grounded first. Dolphins were designed for much shallower draft vessels, that could navigate in 20 feet of water. The problem arose when the channel was later widened practically to reach the pillars, but the protection was not enhanced, and now pillars were reachable by the largest ships.
@@dmitripogosian5084 All of that may be absolutely true. But it doesn't change the fact that they were warned about the piers needing better protection in 1980. That was 3 years after it opened, and the ships were much smaller than todays. And it's not like they didn't know what was coming. During construction of the FSK bridge, they were building larger ships than what were currently in use right there at Sparrow Point. Right or wrong at the time, who knows, but Baltimore elected to not build better protection. The estimate was @ $4 million to build it back then. Now it's costing them $15 million. Per day!
@@KSparks80 And then in those 44 years, thousands of ships passed safely, that brings complacency. It's not like the state couldn't afford changes to the bridge.
Man that was a well paid set up in my opinion
I have seen sine reports that it may take up to 4 years to replace the bridge. It has been a month and no new designs have even been put out yet.
They are waiting for the DEI design team.
what they dont show in this animation, is that the ship made a sharp right turn just after it misses the protective pylon that's in the water to protect the main support. The only way it could have hit that support would be to come in at a hard angle around that protective pylon. Its turned right into that main support structure.
Could you go over the Mcclugage Bridge revamp?
The ending of the video is interesting as it concludes, " perhaps there will be more mandated safety measures as we have now learned."
I heard that same thing 40+ years ago from our then president assuring Americans " we will never see a tragedy like this again" as new laws and safety regulations were instilled after the Sunshine Skyway Bridge accident. I believed him. Why would someone dare make to choice of profit over mandatory safety guidelines and regulations.? Tell the victims family's.
Love the video. Great job.
Worked for a local cruise line for nearly 10 years, and use to watch those massive container ships pass beneath the bridge many times. Quite the sight. Often commented was eventually one of those ships would hit the bridge it would collapse. The lack of dolphins was also a problem.
Well done. I was so tired of hearing the “conspiracy “ stories. I love bridges!
The port will be "open" when the channels are open. But the bridge traffic around Baltimore must be nasty. For a long time.
@@Phoenix-jw1mn Well at least you have a great new shiny bridge now ...
This is a milestone in the bridge enjeneering. Later massive bridges, such a Crimean, have the massive protective constructions around the pillars and the redundancy.
Yeah, by saving money by not updating would now cost much more, both in replacing and legal costs for the 6 who died.
Pytanie pierwsze.Dlaczego go nie wyprowadzały holowniki???.W Polsce z portów duże statki wyprowadzają na redę z portów holowniki.To procedura obowiązkowa.Zdarza się że mniejsze płyną same ale w asyście obok holowników....Że chciwości zwykłej chciano zaoszczędzić no i skutki mamy.Ogromne na Pzdr.
excellent video and narration
Just subscribed 👍
Not an engineer, or shipping expert, but why did she sail with existing electrical power problems? Why did she sail on an ebb tide? Why were tugs not mandated throughout the navigable channel by the port authorities? Was there a pilot on board (not that would have made much difference)!
The cargo ship took on 2 men to handle the harbor pilot duties.
It costs more time, money, and effort to have the tugs bring the ship all the way out. Ship operator wants to save money. Harbor coordinator and tug operators want the next vessel to be serviced ASAP. The assumption is that the cargo ship can speed up to 8 knots and make it out on its own. Of course, the captain of the cargo ship is negligent in not considering the issue of his ship's ongoing power problems.
Mankind only ever learns to close the gate after the horse has bolted!
Sometimes newer learns and horses continue hovering around 😊
In my country we say "until the cooked chicken pecks you"
It is more that because the horse hasn't bolted people stop closing the gate...
Brilliant work.
Where is the sharp turn to starboard in your animation??
I don't think this animation attempted to address that at all. Although one does wonder what was the point of the animation if not to address that. This anim also shows the bridge collapsing immediately after the first leg was hit but that's not correct. It wasn't until the second leg was hit that the bridge collapsed.
@@Robert08010 That's my point. Why not? Is it a deliberate deflection from the truth to influence what people think? Perhaps it is. If someone is going to go thru the trouble of creating this, one would think they would try to make it ACCURATE. Not precise but ACCURATE.
@@denveyebanks4787 Could be (like most of the commenters here) he didn't research enough before making his video or comments. My take is that this was a low research video created to gather views, not to mislead an investigation. Believe me, no investigator is looking at the youtube comments to crack the case.
Well done. Many thanks!👍👍
@4:10 - it is important to note that the fact that container ships were smaller when the bridge was built has limited relevance, because bulk-cargo vessels (for grail, coal, etc) the size of Dali were already common at that time.
You raise valid points about the size of Dali versus the size of container ships when the bridge was opened. Clearly the lack of a proper protection system will be examined and applied to thousands of bridges around the USA, even as a retrofit. But you state that it's ALL about costs - and having lots of tugs all the way to the ocean is ideal - it is not. Many tug operators die each year from accidents occuring while tied to ships. They limit it for safety as well!
One would think that the first priority of all the toll monies collected would be to maintain and protect the structure. Sadly this was not the case. Estimated cost to build a new bridge is 1.9 Billion dollars. Main structure support member bumpers and more dolphins would have been a lot cheaper, but the damage is done. As ships got bigger and bigger and no protection improvements made to the bridge, this was just an accident waiting to happen, IMO.
Great content! Subbed
Excellent effort! No new information though. Not sure how much engineering process you use in these animations but an excellent addition could be around theories why the vessel pulls port side. There are multiple known engineering and physics theories that would cause that. Obviously we are not ruling out possible sabotage as one of the causes. Just that if its proven no sabotage happened then it does not mean the ship did not veer off course and hit the pylon.
at 0:09 why does the ship not go thru the suez canal? is it because its too big to fit in the canal?
there were missile attacks on ships passing at Gulf of Aden and red sea, Pirates in Somalia and the Transit Fees for ships passing through Suez Canal cost more. 😊
Very interesting & smart movie 😁👍
Good Video !
So all the result of greed and failed officials.
Hyper competition*
@@Nmdixon-cu7vm Slave labor?
I think it's awesome that you allow your 6 year old child make the animations for your videos.
Very well done!
You would have thought that after the Sunshine Skyway collapse that there would have been a change to put in those dolphin guards like they did on the new bridge. Especially in heavily traffic shipping routes under bridges.
In the Charleston, South Carolina, tugs escort ships till they're at least past Fort Sumter. And that they start the escort when they come into the harbor
If the ship had so many problems and why are they continuing to use it, I think they should have fixed all the problems with it and then used it
Sy sebagai pelaut turut respect atas kejadian ini dan terimakasih atas videonya yg baik untuk pelajaran buat sy sebagai pelaut 🙏
Hello from Sri Lanka.
So it all boils down to - - why was a "fracture-critical bridge" built without concrete impact bumpers ("dolphins") around its main support columns?
The odds of it happening were extremely low. Dolphins are extremely expensive and you will need convince tax payers/ commuters that they want pay for extra protection
Because it was built in the 1970s before the need for that kind of thing was really understood.
Now if you want to know why those weren't retrofitted following incidents like the Skyway collapse in the 80s, then yeah, you can probably chalk that up to greed and/or negligence.
Let's be real. Unless you had 50 ft thick concrete barriers you're not stopping a ship of that weight cla
It makes no sense why the ships were permitted to move at that speed near the bridge. With the energy of impact multiplying by 4x with every doubling of speed, it should have been traveling far slower while in proximity of the bridge. Even if this was legal (and I doubt it), these speeds need to be lowered and enforced. In addition, all bridges need to have protections added to their supports for this concern, particularly if they are out of date. Hopefully we will learn from this.
With a known power problem, the captain should've had the tugs bring his vessel out to the ocean, to avoid any issue with it losing power inside the waterway.
So you expect us to go 1 knot at all times in Port? Do you not know ships are on a time limit to get to port to port? Smh do your research before you try to act like a merchant seaman
@@chazspeedy.8286dO yOuR rEsEaRcH 🤡
@@chazspeedy.8286 if all slow down, would not make the difference in time limit at the port for anyone - just the same delay for all when compared to higher speed limits.
Depends on the current of the bay. If it is flowing out to sea, the ship has to go faster than the current in order to steer.
after it was collapsed traffic have to use the next closest bridge in Baltimore however that bridge will not allow some vehicles such as tankers to cross.
There is a minor detail in your animation that is incorrect. That pier has 4 legs. Your animation shows the bridge collapsing when the first leg was hit. But it actually didn't collapse until the second leg was hit. I presume it would have collapsed eventually even if the second leg was never hit. But if you watch the video footage carefully, you can see the splash from the first leg hitting the water. Then you see the ship hit the second leg and down came the bridge. One reason for the error might be how you have just the bow but none of the containers beneath the bridge. In actuality the first row of containers were crushed proving that the ship made it further under the bridge that you animation would indicate.
That bridge collapse was quite an inconvenience for diaper Joe. The freighter had his weekly supply of depends.😅
No one asked. This literally has nothing to do with politics. Six people died and all you can think about is "woopdedoo Biden bad."
Why don't the tug boats guide the ship under the bridge and then let it go on it's way, as pointed out that the protection of the bridge supports are not adequately protected seems this procedure should be common practice with all larger ships, prevention better than the cure!!
It's the Francis Scott Key Bridge, why does the thumbnail say Baltimore Bridge?
Because it’s a bridge in baltimore
Or was one ig 😅
1:43 May be a new movie called “McHenry Has Fallen” with Gerald Butler with Vice President GHarris, Morgan Freeman, Rodha Mitchell Melissa Leo, Nick Nolte, and Ben Netnatyau to face of the Hamas Terrorists and Russian General bringing the attack in Washington, D.C. Annapolis, Maryland , and Baltimore Maryland during the Fleet Games
now that i look at it again, it looks as if they don't have to do an entire rebuild across the whole thing, just build back onto where the bridge broke off
In the video of it ,it looks like just a small tap.i can't believe it just fell apart like that.
Blame it on the city who knew full well the bridge pylons were exposed to collision and that with the amount of traffic going under the bridge it was only a matter of time before it was hit. They had entertained proposals to install concrete dolphins or other bridge pylon and caisson protections but had determined it was too expensive. Now They have to build a huge new bridge, install dolphins, AND deal with the loss of revenue from the impassibility of the wreckage. This is going to end up a 30 billion dollar bill, all because they would not spend 100 million to protect a major economic asset.
genau so sieht's aus 😏
Das Problem ist weltweit bekannt und akzeptiert. Wer solche Fehlentscheidungen trifft, sollte sich mit seinem Privatvermögen an den Kosten beteiligen.
If you want to cast blame, at least get your facts straight. The City of Baltimore has nothing to do with this. The bridge was planned, designed, built, operated and maintained by the state of Maryland, not the City of Baltimore.
@@MotoNomad350 City, State. Who cares? It was ineptly designed in the beginning, and it was identified as needing more protection for the primary piers, especially as ships just kept getting larger. And the needed improvements were not done because elected officials would not allocate the funds. It’s not like this is the first time a bridge has been hit by a ship. I am sick and tired of our infrastructure falling apart because we can no longer TAX the super rich and major corporations. Trickle down economics has turned the US into a second world nation. 40 years of tax cuts for the top 5%.
The construction of the bridge was approved by the US Coast Guard. $30 billion is a wild exaggeration of the cost of replacement.
@ The US coast guard does not define bridge standards, in fact, they recommended dolphins. But they had no authority to demand they be installed. And a billion dollars doesn’t go as far as it used to. That’s 20 billion less than Musk wants as a salary for Tesla. 14 billion less than it cost to buy Twitter. And 10 billion less than Jeff Bezos had to give his wife in a divorce. And I was not referring to the cost of building a new bridge. I was referring to the total cost of demolition, new highway approaches, a new bridge, and all the economic losses from having the port essentially shut down for half a year plus the economic impact of road diversions, jobs lost, and more.
The city will end up talking a 30 billion dollar hit, all because they could not pony up 100 million.
1:49 What were those two lines of smoke at the top of the severance point to the right ??
1:50 What was that flash of light on the lower level to the right ???
We must confront what we see with our eyes, and not go into denial, as another blogger does. Aarre Peltomaa
1:49 those were smoke from Emergency Generator(just started)
1:50 its a Navigation Buoys .
... if im not mistaken
6:38 does all traffic in Australia have to drive backwards lol
it was an unexpected incident 😮🇮🇶
But if you are a regular citizen fishing under a bridge the fish police bother you and make sure you have everything in line. But no one holds them accountable.
My question is where were the protective barriers? Even the electric lines next to the bridge had protective barriers.
Why no tugs?
Money.
😮😮😮😮I use to pass that bridge before
I want to know why the bridge was able to be struck by the ship. Such a critical structure continually subject to dangerous traffic should have had more substantial protection from a predictable disaster.
So the bridge was closed, but construction workers were allowed to remain? I'd think that would be a "drop what you're doing and leave now", scenario.
that man in the car must have been shitting and pissing his pants at the same time 5:12
WOW Yet another one
This was near where I live and I saw the bridge later after the crash
It looked like the ship was off course before it lost power!
They lost steering.
nice skoda police cars at 1:30 in the LAPD colours
I don’t think that could be an accident . But Government should take a safe way for that next time is any ship almost going to cross the bridge . They will call coast guards firstly. Then coast guards they will be there to observe and care for the ship when crossing over the bridge. Other way does same thing when leaving.
Tbh I live about an hour away from Baltimore because I live in MD
So basically, they cut costs and took risks.
Already been a month. Crazy
What is the etymology of the word _“dolphin”_ as a bridge protection device?
great
⚔️Obviously, for future safety in the inner ports waterways; ships will be using tugs, to assist them until they’ve passed under bridges.🛡️
This is a classic case of cheeping out. Not so much on the bridge it's self, but support column protection. I don't know what they were thinking it's no secret that if any one of the main support columns comes down, the entire bridge comes down. Why not have these columns protected, not so much to stop a ship of that size but to deflect it so it goes to either side and doesnt hit head on. $$$$$
See Rio-Niteroi Bridge, 14 km, with its huge dolphins, in the port of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
This was sad I saw the vid too of the crash right after like 3min after
It got ran into by a ship that carries 1000s of tons in each hatch plus the weight of the containers and thats not counting how much the ship Itself weighs, wasnt nothing about to stop that. I know this just because I have worked on cargoships before. (I a whole longshorman veteran).
That happen the day before my birthday 🎉
Even if it lost power, the boat should still have momentum for the rudder to work.
It pivoted as if the ruder was hard over.
I feel bad . this is a very big tradegy.
1:31halted?
I'm going with gravity as the culprit.
Had our world been free of it?
The bridge would still be standing.
☮
Floating!
The rebuilt bridge should be a suspension bridge, similar to the Golden Gate.
I don't think this bridge was as big of an artery as you are imagining.
Shippers gotta pay for more tugs