S’pore-registered ship strikes bridge in New Jersey & causes it to be unable to close, MPA investigating

No injuries reported after S’pore-registered ship strikes New Jersey bridge

A Singapore-registered ship struck a bridge in the United States, causing it to be unable to close and out of action for more than six hours.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) will investigate the incident, it said in a media release on Friday (13 Nov).

S’pore-flagged ship causes minor damage to New Jersey bridge

The incident took place at about 2.15am Singapore Time on Friday (13 Nov), when Singapore-registered bulk carrier Strategic Alliance “came into contact” with the Tacony-Palmyra Bridge, MPA said.

The 1.115km-long bridge crosses the Delaware River and connects the states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

6ABC WPVI-TV news reporter Briana Smith said in a TikTok post that the strike caused minor damage to the railing and bridge column.

Ship strike causes traffic congestion after bridge cannot close

In a Facebook post shortly after the strike, Pennsylvania Representative Ed Neilson said the bridge was unable to close and thus out of service.

This caused traffic between the states to be disrupted, especially on the Philadelphia side, where major congestion was reported.

He urged motorists travelling into New Jersey to seek alternative routes, including other bridges.

They should also expect “significantly heavier-than-usual traffic” at other bridges crossing the Delaware River.

The bridge, which opened in 1929, carries as many as 76,200 vehicles a day, with two lanes heading to Philadelphia and one towards New Jersey, according to the Associated Press (AP).

Workers spend hours on repairs

Footage posted by Ms Smith showed several workers on the bridge after the incident.

She said they thoroughly inspected the structure and spent hours repairing and testing the drawbridge to ensure it was safe.

The Federal Highway Administration’s 2026 National Bridge Inventory data rated the bridge as in “fair” condition, AP reported.

Bridge opens over 6 hours later

The bridge finally reopened more than six hours after the incident, Ms Smith revealed, though only two lanes were initially cleared for vehicular traffic while a third lane remained closed so the pedestrian path could be fixed.

Rep Neilson later confirmed in another post that the bridge should be fully operational by the morning rush hour.

MPA separately noted that the bridge had been reopened to vehicular traffic.

No injuries or major damage to ship: MPA

As for the vessel, it is currently safely moored at the Kinder Morgan terminal in Pennsylvania, MPA said.

No injuries were reported to civilians or crew members on board, and the vessel itself did not sustain major damage.

No marine pollution has been reported from the incident, MPA added.

MPA to investigate incident

As Singapore is the flag state of the ship, MPA will investigate the incident.

It is already in contact with the vessel’s management company and the relevant US authorities to establish the circumstances of the incident.

The incident comes more than two years after Singapore-flagged cargo ship Dali crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, causing a large portion of it to collapse and killing six workers.

The Singapore-based companies that owned and managed the ship subsequently agreed to pay about US$102 million (S$134.6 million) in costs.

Also read: Baltimore bridge collision: S’pore ship owner & operator to pay S$135M in cleanup cost

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Featured image adapted from @brianasmithnews on TikTok and VesselFinder.