Baltimore Bridge victims’ families will take legal action to hold ship owner liable

The families are not currently seeking a specific amount of monetary damages but want better protections for migrant workers

The families of victims who died in the Baltimore Bridge disaster are planning to file a request to stop the ship’s owner from escaping liability.

The Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed into the Patapsco River on March 26 after being hit by the Dali, a 984ft cargo vessel, which had experienced two electrical failures the day before the incident and lost power shortly before it hit the structure.

Six construction workers who were on the bridge at the time were killed: Miguel Angel Luna Gonzalez, Jose Mynor Lopez, Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, Carlos Daniel Hernández, Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes and Maynor Yassir Suazo Sandoval.

The cargo ship Dali stuck under part of the structure of the Francis Scott Key Bridge after the collision on March 26. Three families of victims are are planning to take legal action against the Dali’s owner

The families of Luna Gonzalez, Lopez and Castillo Cabrera now intend to submit a limitation of liability proceeding against Grace Ocean Private Limited, the ship’s owner, according to a Tuesday press conference.

Grace Ocean Limited filed a motion in April along with the ship’s operator, Synergy Marine, seeking to limit its liability in the incident to $43.7million, the value of the ship and its cargo at the time of the disaster.

The families’ motion will be filed in Maryland’s District Court before a September 24 deadline, set by the federal court, after the companies filed their petition.

Maria del Carmen Castellón, Luna Gonzalez’s wife of seven years, said that the disaster destroyed the dreams and hopes she had of a happy life with her husband.

Maria del Carmen Castellón, the wife of Miguel Luna, a welder who died during the collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge, speaks during a press conference on Tuesday (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

“Miguel was not only an incredible husband. He was a father to five children, a proud grandfather and a darling son,” she said.

The day he disappeared, “created a wound in my heart that will never heal,” she added.

Days before the tragedy, she said that her husband surprised her by taking her to a space that they were trying to rent to start a restaurant. They already had a food truck which they operated together in the Baltimore area.

“As we looked through the windows, we spoke of a future in which he would not have to suffer in a dangerous job and deteriorating health,” she said.

The families are not currently seeking a specific amount of monetary damages.

A portrait of Miguel Luna, a worker who died during the collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge, is displayed among articles of his welding gear during a news conference on Tuesday (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

“Accountability here means, first and foremost, figuring out what went wrong and holding those who are responsible to account for their actions in the tragedy,” said Matthew Wessler, an attorney representing the families, during the news conference.

The families’ goal is to bring about legislation that creates new working protections for migrants and grants work permits for immigrants already in the US, according to Gustavo Torres, the executive director of CASA, an advocacy organization supporting the victims’ loved ones.

He condemned the companies’ decision to try and limit their liability in the disaster.

“Grace Ocean has chosen the path of impunity over the path of justice. Driven by profit and self-interest, their actions seek to erase the accountability they owe to these families, to these men whose lives were stolen. But we will not let that happen,” he said.

The Independent has contacted Grace Ocean Limited and the ship’s operator, Synergy Marine, for comment.