The Lawfare Podcast Lawfare Archive: Juliette Kayyem on the Baltimore Bridge Collapse and Crisis Management
Jul 12, 2025
Juliette Kayyem, a Harvard Kennedy School professor and author on disaster management, discusses the tragic Baltimore Bridge collapse caused by a cargo ship collision, which resulted in the loss of six lives. She analyzes the immediate responses and economic ramifications, stressing the importance of proactive crisis management. The conversation highlights strategies for resilience, comparing prevention with response efforts and the necessity for effective communication. Kayyem underscores the responsibilities of both government and industry in safeguarding critical infrastructure against future crises.
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Cascade Collapse of Baltimore Bridge
- A Singapore-flagged cargo ship became unsteerable and collided with Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge.
- The bridge collapsed like dominoes, tragically killing six maintenance workers on it.
Bridge Design and Ship Size Mismatch
- The bridge had no federal requirement for protection, and no peer protection was installed.
- Larger ships outgrow the design limits of older bridges, creating dangerous mismatches.
Resilience: Left and Right of Boom
- Resilience has two components: left of boom (prevention) and right of boom (response, recovery, resiliency).
- Recovery planning includes short-term alternatives and long-term rebuilding, crucial for high-consequence infrastructure.
