Feds conduct ‘authorized search’ of Dali’s sister ship in Baltimore

Sept. 21 (UPI) -- Federal authorities on Saturday morning boarded a sister ship of the Maersk Dali, which caused the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse that killed six on March 26.

Investigators with the FBI, Environmental Protection Agency's Criminal Investigation Division and the Coast Guard's Investigative Services boarded the Maersk Saltoro in the Port of Baltimore while "conducting authorized law enforcement activity," the FBI told NPR and WBAL TV .

The Singapore-based Synergy Marine Group manages the Saltoro and the Dali, which share the same design and were built by South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries in 2015. Each vessel measures 984 feet in length.

Synergy spokesman Darrell Wilson confirmed the Coast Guard and FBI boarded the Saltoro and referred any questions to those agencies, the Washington Post reported.

The vessel entered the Port of Baltimore at 5:45 a.m., and the federal authorities boarded the Saltoro 15 minutes later.

The boarding occurred after the Department of Justice on Wednesday filed a $100 million federal lawsuit against the owner and operator of the Dali in the Maryland U.S. District Court in Baltimore.

The $100 million demand reflects the cost incurred while cleaning up the collapsed bridge.

The defendants "sent an ill-prepared crew on an abjectly unseaworthy vessel to navigate the United States' waterways," the DOJ wrote in the lawsuit.

Singapore-based Grace Ocean Private owns the Dali, which is operated by Synergy and was chartered by the Danish shipping company AP Moller-Maersk when the March tragedy occurred.

The debris was cleared and the shipping channel opened in June but vehicle traffic likely will be cut off until 2028 when a new bridge is built.