DOJ, Families Of 3 Workers Killed In Baltimore Key Bridge Collapse File Lawsuits

BALTIMORE, MD — The U.S. Department of Justice and the families of three workers killed when the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed in March have filed lawsuits against the owners of the container ship that struck the Baltimore harbor bridge, according to reports.

At a news conference Tuesday, the families of Miguel Ángel Luna González, José Mynor López and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera announced the lawsuit against Grace Ocean Private Ltd. and Synergy Marine Pte Ltd., the owners of the Dali container ship that slammed into one of the bridge's support columns, NBC Washington reported.

The three men were among six road construction workers killed when a portion of the bridge plummeted into the frigid Patapsco River following the collision.

At the news conference, family members described the tragedy as "deadly negligence," NBC Washington reported. In the lawsuit, the families are requesting an unspecified amount of money, as well as work permits to be able to "live with dignity in the United States."

The Department of Justice on Wednesday also filed a lawsuit against the owners of the Dali, seeking to recover more than $100 million that the government spent to clear the underwater debris and reopen the Port of Baltimore.

The tragedy was "entirely avoidable,” according to the federal lawsuit.

Related:

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“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,” U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a written statement.

A road crew was on the bridge patching potholes on I-695 when the collision happened on March 26. The workers killed hailed from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. Only two workers survived.

The Dali suffered two electrical blackouts that led to major equipment failure hours before it struck the bridge, according to a preliminary report released by the National Transportation Safety Board.

In the report, officials wrote that the Dali had experienced electrical problems the day before the March 26 collision. In the hours before the ship left the Port of Baltimore on a voyage to Sri Lanka, the ship lost power twice.

According to officials, a mistake by a crew member working on a diesel engine part caused the first "in-port blackout." A second blackout in port was attributed to "insufficient fuel pressure," the report said.

The FBI has launched a criminal investigation into the circumstances leading up to the crash.

Six months after the collapse, María del Carmen Castellón — the wife of Miguel Luna — spoke to the Washington Post and also shared her story for the first time at Tuesday's news conference. She told the Post that justice for her husband and the other victims meant holding wrongdoers accountable.

“If there was real justice,” she said, “my husband would still be alive, sharing a life filled with love and a brilliant future.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Read all of Patch's Key Bridge collapse coverage here.