Cleanup begins in 'very long road' to recovery for Baltimore port; aftermath after Singapore ship wrecked bridge

A crane on a barge being pushed towards the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge. - PHOTO: NYTIMES via The Straits Times/ANN

BALTIMORE (AFP): Cranes began arriving on Friday and late Thursday at the scene of the catastrophic bridge collapse over Baltimore harbor, as authorities shifted to a clean-up phase of the recovery and warned of extensive work before the major US port can reopen.

The machinery will be deployed in a tricky operation to clear the twisted steel remnants of the Francis Scott Key Bridge from where it fell into the Patapsco River -- blocking the entrance to the Port of Baltimore -- after a massive cargo ship Tuesday hurtled into the span.