“完全不适航”！船东、船管遭索赔超1亿美元
2024-09-21 09:11阅读：
9月18日，美国司法部对集装箱船“Dali”轮船东和船舶管理公司提起了一项1.03亿美元的民事索赔，指控其因疏忽和船只不适航造成巴尔的摩弗朗西斯·斯科特·基桥（以下简称“巴尔的摩大桥”）重大事故，使港口运营停摆数月。
这份长达53页的指控书向马里兰州地方法院起诉“Dali”轮船东Grace Ocean和船舶管理公司Synergy
Marine，详细描述了3月26日巴尔的摩大桥倒塌，造成六人丧生的事故经过。指控书详细描述了事故发生前，“Dali”轮曾多次失去动力、恢复动力，最终再次失去动力并撞上大桥。
美国司法部代理副总检察长Benjamin
Mizer在声明中表示：“‘Dali’轮船东和运营方早已知晓船只存在可能导致断电的振动问题。然而，他们不仅没有采取必要的预防措施，反而选择忽视，最终导致灾难发生。由于疏忽、管理不善，以及在某些情况下为了削减成本，他们错误地配置了船只的电气和机械系统，致使这些系统在动力中断后无法迅速恢复推进力和转向能力。最终，当‘Dali’轮失去动力时，一系列故障接踵而至，引发了灾难。”
此外，指控还指出，船方并未解决振动问题，甚至对于已经破裂的部件，他们仅仅通过焊接掩盖裂缝，继续维持运营。
文件还透露，“Dali”轮在变压器室内的1号降压变压器与钢梁之间用了一根振动减震杆进行支撑，这根杆是由货物设备临时拼凑而成，且一端被涂成了白色。
美国司法部强调，事故发生时，“Dali”轮四种控制船只的手段——螺旋桨、舵、锚和艏侧推器——在关键时刻全都失灵，导致事故无法避免或减轻。
美国司法部代理助理总检察长Brian
Boynton表示：“这是一起完全可以避免的灾难，船东和运营方的多次错误操作直接导致了悲剧的发生。
我们提起诉讼，旨在追回美国为应对这一灾难所花费的费用，包括清理被撞毁的大桥残骸以及与船只缠绕在一起的部分，并消除油污污染的潜在风险。”
此外，美国司法部还提出了惩罚性赔偿要求，目的是警示“Dali”轮船东与运营方以及其他船公司不要重蹈覆辙。
在宣布这一诉讼时，美国司法部代理助理总检察长Chetan Patil指出：“这起事故是由于Grace
Ocean和Synergy的鲁莽决策而导致的，他们明知船只不适航，却冒着极大的风险让船只驶入至关重要的水道，完全忽视了对美国人民生命和国家基础设施的威胁。”
这一法律行动是“Dali”轮的船东与运营方在事故发生后不久提起的限制赔偿或免责请求的一部分，他们试图将其赔偿责任限制在大约4400万美元，约为这场灾难预估20-40
亿美元巨额损失的1-2%。而美国政府的索赔则不包括巴尔的摩大桥的重建费用，该桥由马里兰州建造、拥有、维护并运营，马里兰州的律师可能会代表州政府提出独立的索赔。
巴尔的摩市政府此前认为，两家涉事公司的“责任不应该受到限制”，其正寻求赔偿更换桥梁和所有引桥的费用、与城市交通中断有关的费用、所有清理费用、商业税费损失以及外加惩罚性赔偿。
围绕今年这一最具公众关注的航运事故的法律案件预计将持续多年，涉及数亿美元的赔偿费用。
与此同时，因巴尔的摩倒塌而失去亲人的三户家庭的律师也提起了针对“Dali”轮船东的个人损害赔偿诉讼，使这一船只的法律纠纷雪上加霜。“Dali”轮计划于本周离开美国前往中国进行大规模维修。
Justice Department Sues Dali Owner For $103
Million
By Waterways Journal
The U.S. Justice Department has filed a civil claim in the U.S.
District Court for the District of Maryland against Grace Ocean
Private Limited and Synergy Marine Private Limited, the Singaporean
corporations that owned and operated the container ship Dali.
In the early morning hours of March 26, the mv. Dali left the Port
of Baltimore bound for Sri Lanka. While navigating through the Fort
McHenry Channel, the Dali lost power, regained power and then lost
power again before striking a pier on the Francis Scott Key Bridge.
Within seconds, the bridge collapsed and plunged into the water
below, killing six people.
The lawsuit, which was filed September 18, claims negligence and
unseaworthiness of the vessel.
The bridge collapse, which pinned the Dali in place for weeks,
obstructed the navigable channel and brought all shipping into and
out of the Port of Baltimore to a standstill.
The lawsuit seeks to recover more than $100 million in costs the
United States incurred in responding to the fatal disaster and for
clearing the entangled wreck and bridge debris from the navigable
channel so the port could reopen.
“The Justice Department is committed to ensuring accountability for
those responsible for the destruction of the Francis Scott Key
Bridge, which resulted in the tragic deaths of six people and
disrupted our country’s transportation and defense infrastructure,”
said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “With this civil claim,
the Justice Department is working to ensure that the costs of
clearing the channel and reopening the Port of Baltimore are borne
by the companies that caused the crash, not by the American
taxpayer.”
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, along with employees of federal,
state and local agencies, removed about 50,000 tons of steel,
concrete and asphalt from the channel and from the Dali itself.
While these removal operations were underway, the Corps also
cleared a series of temporary channels to relieve the bottleneck at
the port and mitigate some of the economic impact caused by the
allision and collapse. The Fort McHenry Channel was cleared by June
10, with the Port of Baltimore reopened for commercial
navigation.
“The owner and operator of the Dali were well aware of vibration
issues on the vessel that could cause a power outage,” Principal
Deputy Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer said. “But
instead of taking necessary precautions, they did the opposite. Out
of negligence, mismanagement and, at times, a desire to cut costs,
they configured the ship’s electrical and mechanical systems in a
way that prevented those systems from being able to quickly restore
propulsion and steering after a power outage. As a result, when the
Dali lost power, a cascading set of failures led to
disaster.”
The lawsuit asserts that none of the four means that should have
been available to help steer the Dali—the propeller, rudder, anchor
or bow thruster—worked when they were needed.
The Justice Department’s claim also seeks punitive damages to deter
the owner and operator of the Dali and others. The department’s
claim is part of a legal action the owner and operator of the Dali
initiated shortly after the tragedy, in which they seek exoneration
or limitation of their liability to approximately $44
million.
The claim does not include any damages for the reconstruction of
the Francis Scott Key Bridge. The state of Maryland built, owned,
maintained and operated the bridge, and attorneys on the state’s
behalf may file a separate claim for those damages. Subsequently,
pursuant to the governing regulation, funds recovered by the state
of Maryland for reconstruction of the bridge will be used to reduce
the project costs paid by federal taxpayer dollars.
————
Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Benjamin C.
Mizer Delivers Remarks On The Justice Department's Lawsuit Against
The Owner and Operator of The Vessel That Destroyed The Francis
Scott Key Bridge
Good morning. My name is Benjamin Mizer, and I am the Principal
Deputy Associate Attorney General at the Justice Department. I am
joined today by Chetan Patil, who is the Acting Deputy Assistant
Attorney General of the Civil Division’s Torts Branch. I am also
joined by U.S. Attorney Erek Barron for the District of Maryland
and representatives from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the
Navy, and the U.S. Coast Guard.
Today, the United States filed a civil claim in the U.S. District
Court for the District of Maryland against the owner and operator
of the Motor Vessel DALI, the container vessel that destroyed the
Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, resulting in six needless
and heartbreaking deaths. The action seeks recovery of more than
$100 million in damages and costs incurred by the United States in
responding to the fatal disaster and reopening access to the Port
of Baltimore.
In the early morning hours of March 26, the DALI left the Port of
Baltimore bound for Sri Lanka. While navigating through the Fort
McHenry Channel, the vessel lost power, regained power, and then
lost power again before crashing into the Francis Scott Key Bridge.
The whole country watched the horrifying video footage showing the
bridge collapse and plunge into the water below.
Six construction workers tragically lost their lives when the
bridge collapsed. Our hearts go out to their families and loved
ones for this senseless and wholly preventable loss.
In addition to the tragic loss of life, the destruction of the
Francis Scott Key Bridge severely disrupted the economy of
Baltimore and affected the entire nation. Not only did the bridge’s
collapse sever a critical link in our highway infrastructure, but
it also blocked the Fort McHenry Channel and brought to a
standstill all maritime traffic in and out of the Port of Baltimore
— one of the largest shipping hubs in the nation.
Just days after the disaster, President Biden pledged that the
federal government would do whatever it took to get the Port of
Baltimore up and running as soon as possible. What happened next
was a heroic feat of governmental cooperation in the public
interest. The United States led response efforts among more than 50
federal, state, and local agencies. The initial response focused on
search and rescue efforts for those workers who were missing. But
even as those efforts were ongoing, planning and operations
commenced to remove more than 50,000 tons of steel, concrete, and
asphalt from the channel and from the DALI itself. While these
efforts were underway, temporary channels were also cleared to
start relieving the bottleneck at the Port of Baltimore and
mitigating some of the economic devastation caused by the DALI. The
work was complex, costly, time-consuming — and at times dangerous.
Thanks to these herculean efforts, on June 10, the United States
reopened the Fort McHenry Channel, allowing commercial navigation
once again to flow freely into and out of the Port of
Baltimore.
I stand in awe of the remarkable work done by the U.S. Coast Guard,
Army Corps of Engineers, Navy Supervisor of Salvage and Diving, and
their contractors, as well as our State and local partners and
countless others who supported those agencies.
As we outline in our claim, this catastrophe was entirely
avoidable. We allege that the DALI’s owner and operator recklessly
cut corners in ways that risked lives and the economic well-being
of the nation. In particular, our claim alleges that the owner and
operator of the DALI were well aware of vibration issues on the
vessel that could cause a power outage. But instead of taking
necessary precautions, they did the opposite. Out of negligence,
mismanagement, and, at times, a desire to cut costs, they
configured the ship’s electrical and mechanical systems in a way
that prevented those systems from being able to quickly restore
propulsion and steering after a power outage. As a result, when the
DALI lost power, a cascading set of failures led to disaster.
The United States spent more $100 million responding to this
disaster, to clear the channel, and to reopen the Port of
Baltimore. Those costs should be borne by the ship’s owner and
operator, not the American taxpayer. But that is not all. To try to
keep this type of conduct from ever happening again, we are also
seeking punitive damages. The Justice Department is committed to
holding the DALI’s owner and operator responsible for the harm they
caused and to deter them and others from taking reckless risks with
American lives and infrastructure.
In bringing this civil action, I greatly appreciate the partnership
we have with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of
Maryland, our cooperation with the State of Maryland, and the
critical assistance we have received from many departments and
agencies of the federal government. I am particularly proud of the
work done by the Civil Division in putting together this
comprehensive civil action, work that began within hours of when
this tragedy occurred.
With that, I will turn it over to U.S. Attorney Barron.
