Baltimore bridge collapse: Indian chief engineer admits mistake over faulty fuel pump

Two years after the fatal collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge, the chief engineer of the container ship MV Dali has admitted to a criminal violation. Karthikeyan Deenadayalan, an Indian national, acknowledged he was aware the ship used an unsafe fuel supply pump that lacked redundancy.

“

he failed to report a hazardous condition to the US Coast Guard.

According to the Justice Department, Deenadayalan knew this compromised the vessel's ability to navigate safely and recover from a power loss. He admitted this could adversely affect the safety of the ship, bridges, and structures.

This admission comes after the ship's management companies, Synergy Marine Pte Ltd and Synergy Maritime Pte Ltd, along with technical superintendent Radhakrishnan Karthik Nair, were charged with conspiracy and willfully failing to report the hazardous condition. They allegedly altered the ship, relying on a flushing pump not designed for automatic restart, which led to a second blackout and the bridge collision.

“

the unsafe pump, known as a flushing pump, lacked redundancy, which compromised the vessels’ safe navigation and ability to recover from the loss of power.

If the proper fuel pumps had been used, the Dali would have regained power in time to pass under the bridge safely. The incident remains one of the most significant U.S. maritime disasters.

“

he knew that the inability to recover from a loss of power could adversely affect the safety of the vessel itself, as well as any bridge, structure, or shore area.