Army Corps of Engineers Aims to Restore Normal Access to Port of Baltimore by End of May

The Army Corps of Engineers has a tentative timeline of restoring access to the Port of Baltimore to "normal capacity" by the end of May, it said in a statement Thursday night.

"Engineers are aiming to reopen the permanent, 700-foot-wide by 50-foot-deep federal navigation channel by the end of May, restoring port access to normal capacity," according to the news release.

Also, the Corps said engineers plan to open a channel 280 feet wide and 35 feet deep by the end of April to allow barge container service and some vessels that move automobiles and farm equipment to pass the wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which collapsed March 26 when it was struck by a container ship.

"These are ambitious timelines that may still be impacted by significant adverse weather conditions or changes in the complexity of the wreckage," Army Corps of Engineers Lt. Gen. Scott A. Spellmon said in a news release. Spellmon is the corps' commanding general.