FBI Boards Sister Ship of Boxship Dali at Port of Baltimore

On Saturday morning, the FBI boarded a sister ship of the boxship Dali at the Port of Baltimore on an unspecified investigative mission. 

A large team of federal agents - including investigators from CGIS, EPA and FBI - went up the gangway of the Maersk Saltoro in the early hours of the morning, just after the vessel arrived at Baltimore. The FBI declined to comment on the heavy federal presence, saying only that it was carrying out "court authorized law enforcement activity" aboard the vessel, a phrase that typically refers to a search warrant. 

The FBI did not specify whether the visit had anything to do with the federal claim against Dali over the destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. The U.S. Justice Department has filed an unseaworthiness claim against Dali's owner Grace Ocean Pte Ltd. and operator Synergy Marine for $100 million, laying out an allegation that Dali was "jury-rigged" to fail in the event of an electrical fault. 

"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," said Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer last week. "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 Maersk Saltoro has much in common with Dali: they are sister ships, both built by the same Korean yard, both managed by Synergy Marine, and both chartered to Maersk. The Maersk Saltoro's listed owner, Argosy Pte Ltd., also shares a street address with the owner of the Dali, Grace Ocean Pte Ltd. (The building houses several maritime firms and organizations, and colocation does not necessarily imply a commercial connection.)

In a brief statement Sunday morning, a spokesperson representing Synergy Marine said that the firm "can confirm the authorities have left the vessel and cleared it to resume cargo operations today."

Singapore-flagged Maersk Saltoro has a spotless port state inspection record dating back to her delivery in 2015. Maersk's itinerary shows that she is scheduled to leave Baltimore on the 24th and head for Colombo, Sri Lanka, arriving in mid-October.