(NewsNation) — The container ship that caused the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore to collapse early Tuesday was flying under a Singaporean flag, meaning that the vessel follows the regulations enforced by that country despite sailing out of an American port while allowing foreign companies a cheaper option than a U.S. vessel.
The ship, known as Dali, was built in 2015 and owned by Singapore’s Grace Ocean Private Limited, The New York Times reported. It was being operated by the Danish company, Maersk, and was only 30 minutes into its 27-day journey to Sri Lanka.
A Grace Ocean official confirmed to the shipping industry website TradeWinds that the Dali vessel was involved in the incident and that it was working to determine what caused the ship to veer into one of the bridge’s supports, causing the structure’s collapse.
Officials with the National Transportation Safety Board said at a news conference Tuesday that the agency’s counterparts would be arriving from Singapore on Wednesday to assist with the investigation since the vessel remains under regulations from that country.
TradeWinds reported the ship did not have any Maersk crew members or personnel on board. The NTSB official said Tuesday the agency is still working to determine the ship’s crew’s nationality as well as any safety issues the vessel may have experienced before setting off for Sri Lanka.
Why does a country’s flag matter on ships?
While Tuesday’s incident took place near the Port of Baltimore, the vessel’s flag plays a significant role in what happens next, under international shipping rules. By being flagged in Singapore, the ship follows the flag state’s maritime law and is also afforded different protections and preferential treatments such as tax, certification, and security, according to Maritime Insight.
In addition, a ship’s registration also covers several critical financial factors, including vessel purchases, financing, and leasing, the shipping website indicates.
However, the use of a foreign-built ship sailing out of an American port follows a trend in which the U.S. Department of Transportation reported a significant drop in American-built ships being used in international trade.
The agency’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) reported that between 1992-2017, the number of U.S.-built ships being used in foreign trade dropped from 183 to 82.
MARAD officials said that foreign companies using a U.S. vessel between American ports came at a “comparatively higher cost” than foreign-flagged ships traveling to the U.S. via other countries.
What is the Jones Act?
The drop in U.S.-built ships came 97 years after then-President Woodrow Wilson enacted the Merchant Marine Act, also known as the Jones Act, which was introduced to help the U.S., shipping industry recover from World War I.
The Jones Act requires all ships carrying goods between U.S. ports to be American-built, owned, crewed, and flagged. In addition to bolstering a domestic shipping industry that provided $150 billion in economic venue and 650,000 American jobs as of 2020, the law also continues to provide additional benefits.
In an op-ed piece written by Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss, Sen, Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., the lawmakers said that the Jones Act continues to advance the nation’s national security by “helping maintain a vibrant domestic shipbuilding industry and maritime workforce.
While some have moved to repeal to Jones Act, the trio of lawmakers wrote in the 2020 Op-Ed that the law’s existence keeps foreign companies from being able to influence the flow of foreign goods that “are keeping our country afloat.”
“Thousands of now-secure American jobs throughout our shipbuilding and maritime workforces would be threatened, and foreign governments could gain even more undue leverage over our economy,” the lawmakers wrote.
They added: “Losing the Jones Act would mean ceding our domestic maritime economy to China and other foreign-flagged competitors, making us more vulnerable during times of crisis.”