A Baltimore publisher is suing the owner and operator of the DALI, the cargo ship responsible for the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse on March 26.
Karen Austin and Charles Austin, the owners of American Publishing LLC, have filed a class action lawsuit against Grace Ocean Private, the owner of the DALI, and the ship’s operator, Synergy Marine Group. The complaint alleges that local companies have cut back on placing advertisements in American Publishing’s publications since the bridge collapse, which has impacted its bottom line.
Before the bridge collapse, the firm was “flourishing,” increasing distribution, and winning “significant advertisement revenue from local enterprises in and around Baltimore,” according to the lawsuit. But in the month following the collapse, income has allegedly dried up — declining 84% year-over-year.
“There was no other reason for this dramatic loss of income other than the destruction of the Key Bride,” the plaintiffs write.
The lawsuit accuses both companies of “gross and potentially criminal negligence,” matching similar language used by attorneys for Baltimore in the city’s own lawsuit against Synergy and Grace Ocean, which was filed Monday. The Austins argue that Synergy and Grace Ocean’s petition capping damages they might be required to pay at $43.6 million should not be allowed.
Chartered by Maersk, the DALI left Baltimore on March 26 for Sri Lanka before it experienced an apparent loss of power and struck one of the bridge’s critical support columns. It instantly collapsed, killing six construction workers.
“This catastrophe was wholly preventable. Reports indicate that alarms signaling erratic power supply had been activated even before the Dali’s departure, clearly signifying its unfit state for voyage,” the lawsuit alleges. “Nevertheless, it was allowed to leave port, a decision marred by flagrant disregard for seaworthiness.”
The collapse of the bridge shut down vessel traffic through Baltimore’s port, which handled 52.3 million tons of foreign cargo, worth $80 billion, in 2023. The port is a major player in supply chains for the auto and energy industries.
On Thursday, Maryland’s Port Administration opened a temporary channel allowing ships docked at the port to leave. The 35-foot-deep channel, which will be open through April 29 or 30, is the fourth opened by the state to allow movement out of the port.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expects to reopen the port’s permanent 700-foot wide, 50-foot deep channel by the end of next month. More than $6 billion of cargo doesn’t pass through the port every month it remains closed.