11 crew members of the ship that collided with the Key Bridge remain in Baltimore one year later.

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    BALTIMORE (WJZ) — Eleven crew members from the container ship that collided with the Francis Scott Key Bridge are still in Baltimore one year after the bridge collapsed, according to authorities.

The members of the Dali’s crew were requested to stay while investigators continued to review the collision, which killed six construction workers and blocked the passageway to the Port of Baltimore for weeks.

After a year in Baltimore, part of the crew still does not know when they can go home.

Synergy Marine, the Dali’s management company, declined to make the crew members available for interviews. However, WJZ did speak to locals who have been helping crew members as their stay in Baltimore continues.

“While they’re here, we’ll be taking care of them.”

Over the past year, Apostleship of the Sea, the Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center and other faith organizations in Maryland have been a shoulder to lean on for the 11 remaining crew members who were asked to stay in the U.S.

“They’ll be here for the duration of the litigation process, which could take a year or more,” Rev. Josh Messick with the Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center told WJZ in June 2024. “I and other entities involved who are there to support them have, as gently as possible, tried to prepare them for this eventuality – that they could be here for the foreseeable future. And when all is said and done, there may be one or more of them that remains even longer.”

“It’s a hard life. It’s months away from home,” explained Andrew Middleton, Director of Apostleship of the Sea. “While they’re here, we’ll be taking care of them.”

Part of Apostleship of the Sea’s mission is to help seafarers from around the world when they arrive at the Port of Baltimore. They help nearly 12,000 people each year.

“We try to be a welcoming and friendly face in the Port of Baltimore for the seafarers that call on the ships that come in,” said Middleton. “Religious services time at the Seafarers’ Center – just to relax and get away from the ship for a few hours and see something other than water and steel walls.”

Typically, many of the sailors are docked in the port for a short time – sometimes just for a couple of hours, or a few days. Middleton and his volunteers help connect them with loved ones or take care of basic needs, like running errands, refilling prescriptions or attending religious services.

Initial instinct: “How do we serve them now?”

On March 26, 2024, Middleton couldn’t sleep on what was supposed to be a normal night.

“I live about two miles from the bridge, according to Google Maps, and for some reason, I was awake at about one o’clock that morning, laying there, trying to go back to sleep, and I heard what I initially thought was thunder,” Middleton said.

The roaring sound he heard was the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.

“I went to the living room and turned on the TV, and within 30 seconds, it was reported, you know, they were reporting that the Key Bridge had collapsed after it had been collided with by the Dali,” Middleton described.

After the initial shock wore off, Middleton said the name of the ship sounded familiar.

“I realized that we had provided transportation for the crew on the Sunday and Monday prior to their sailing,” Middleton said. “So I had some contact numbers.”

He immediately called the crew on board – hoping they were okay.

“But at that point, I kind of decided that I guess I should get dressed and go to work,” said Middleton. “You know, the initial instinct is okay, how do we– how do we serve them now?”

At the time of the collapse, Middleton explained that there were about seven other vessels stuck in the Port of Baltimore for weeks that they also had to take care of.

“Trying to take care of seven vessels with, you know, 20 to 25 people in each one of those vessels. It was traumatic for everyone,” said Middleton.

While the Dali ship and its crew sat in the Patapsco River for weeks, Middleton had the chance to go aboard the Dali with Bishop Andy Parker.

“I was able to, at the invitation of the ship management company, actually go out to the Dali while it was still out in the river on May 1, along with Bishop Parker,” Middleton explained. “He was able to celebrate Mass for the Catholics that were on board, but we really were just going out to make our support for them personally known face to face.”

“There was a little bit of somberness, you know, given that, at that point, I think four or five of the missing bridge workers had been found, and there was still one that they were searching for,” Middleton said. “And, you know, the reality of those lives being lost and their families’ lives being changed forever, you could not think about that, especially as we really approached alongside the Dali.”

Life of the ship In June 2024, ten members of the Dali’s crew were cleared to leave the U.S. while the ship relocated to Norfolk, Virginia.

The 11 expected to stay in Baltimore are high-ranking members of the crew, including officers. Ten of them are from India and one is from Sri Lanka.

Synergy Marine said it will provide funding for food and lodging for the remaining crew in the U.S.

“I tell them constantly, feel free to reach out if you need something, if you need to go to the grocery store or the doctor or shopping,” Middleton said. “The initial need was going to be maintaining communication for them.”

The Apostleship of the Sea did find more ways to support the crew, by providing care packages, religious services and vital supplies like SIM cards so they can be in touch with family in India and Sri Lanka.

“That was an initial worry, I think, for everyone involved was, you know, mentally how are they holding up,” Middleton said.

Middleton said they’ve been working to help the time pass by taking the crew sightseeing.

“We’ve taken them for a day trip to Washington, D.C. We took some of them to a baseball game,” Middleton explained.

They hope to plan a trip to Gettysburg, too.

How is the Dali’s crew holding up?

“In the meantime, since the incident, you know, all the crew that I’ve spoken with have been thankful for what we were able to do for them and what we’re still doing for them, even today,” Middleton said.

He explained that the crew keeps the victims of the collapse in their minds, because the tragedy still aches.

“One of the crew members asked if he could see the list so that he could pray for those gentlemen and their families,” Middleton said. “I think it’s important to remember that those lives were lost and those families’ lives are forever changed. We need to pray for them and always remember them. No one intended for this to happen.”

As they work to heal, their work to provide hope and comfort to all seafarers will continue.

“I think it’s important to remind people that seafarers are men and women who go to sea to support families, and a lot of times, they come from developing nations, and they’re supporting not just their immediate family, but parents and in-laws, aunts, uncles and siblings,” Middleton said. “And the best way that they can do that is going to sea.”

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