Overview
- Federal investigators voted that a loose signal wire from improper wire‑label banding caused the Dali’s blackout, eliminating propulsion and steering before the strike.
- The NTSB outlined contributing failures including inadequate operator oversight, misconfigured backup systems, and the lack of timely warnings to highway workers on the span.
- Maryland’s transportation authority was faulted for not assessing the bridge’s vulnerability to ship strikes, and the board urged reviews of 68 similar bridges in 19 states.
- State officials now project a late‑2030 reopening, with the replacement bridge estimated at $4.3 billion to $5.2 billion, up from roughly $1.9 billion and two years later than first planned.
- Maryland attributes higher costs to pricier materials, stricter federal design and resilience standards, and a robust pier‑protection, longer, higher-span design, and it is pursuing damages from the ship’s owner and operator.