www.thecentersquare.com – By Sarah Roderick-Fitch | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-03-24 06:00:00
(The Center Square) – An ominous report identifies 20 bridges nationwide at serious risk of ship collisions, potentially resulting in a collapse like the one that brought down the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
A group of engineers from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore analyzed the likelihood of ship/bridge collisions across the country, including the frequency of potential collisions.
Experts note that “ship strikes should be extremely rare” due to bridge design standards. The group says the annual chances of a bridge collapse stemming from a ship collision “should be less than 1 in 10,000.” However, the unsettling report finds that “some of the busiest bridges” in the country are “likely” to be hit by ships “within our lifetime.”
“With this investigation we wanted to know if what happened to the Key Bridge was a rare occurrence. Was it an aberration? We found it’s really not,” said Michael Shields, a Johns Hopkins engineer specializing in risk assessment and lead investigator of the National Science Foundation. “In fact, it’s something we should expect to happen every few years.”
Most of the bridges identified through the study are located in major metropolitan areas, including New Orleans, Houston, New York City and San Francisco, including one of the world’s most iconic bridges, the Golden Gate Bridge.
Among the bridges identified was the Delaware Memorial Bridge, which connects Delaware and New Jersey as part of Interstate 95. A potential collision with that bridge could have a devastating impact on the I-95 corridor from Maine to Florida, one the busiest in the country.
Before the Key Bridge collision, it was 15 years since the nation experienced a significant ship/bridge collision. However, engineers at Johns Hopkins believe chances could be high for a similar incident to the Key Bridge, leading to the group analyzing several factors surrounding shipping traffic and movements – specifically under bridges.
The report said, “The results revealed stark vulnerabilities for many bridges. Several bridges could expect a major ship collision – a collision strong enough to cause catastrophic damage or collapse – at least once every 20 to 50 years. Many others are likely to sustain a ship strike within 100 years.”
Shields highlighted the need to dramatically reduce the chances of repeating a disaster like Key Bridge collapse.
“To keep our bridges safe and operational, we want the chances of a collision strong enough to take down the bridge to be less than one in 10,000 in a given year, not one in a 100. One in 100 is extremely high,” Shields said. “If I look at the San Francisco Bay Bridge, we’re likely to see a major collision once every 22 years. That is huge. We want that number to be thousands of years. That’s tens of years.”
The most vulnerable bridges identified by the report include:
• Huey P. Long Bridge, Louisiana. Collision is expected once every 17 years.
• San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge. Collision is expected once every 22 years.
• Crescent City Connection, New Orleans. Collision is expected once every 34 years.
• Beltway 8 Bridge, Texas. Collision is expected once every 35 years.
• Hale Boggs Memorial Bridge, Louisiana. Collision is expected once every 37 years.
• Bayonne Bridge, New York/New Jersey. Collision is expected once every 43 years.
• Fred Hartman Bridge, Texas. Collision is expected once every 47 years.
• Martin Luther King Bridge, Texas. Collision expected once every 64 years.
• Sunshine Bridge, Louisiana. Collision expected once every 71 years.
• Rainbow Bridge, Texas. Collision is expected once every 71 years.
• Veterans Memorial Bridge, Louisiana. Collision expected once every 74 years.
• Chesapeake Bay Bridge, Maryland. Collision expected once every 86 years.
• Talmadge Memorial Bridge, Georgia. Collision is expected once every 88 years.
• Veterans Memorial Bridge, Texas. Collision expected once every 94 years.
• Delaware Memorial Bridge, Delaware/New Jersey. Collision is expected once every 129 years.
• Dames Point Bridge, Florida. Collision expected once every 152 years.
• Horace Wilkinson Bridge, Louisiana. Collision expected once every 198 years.
• Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, New York. Collision expected once every 362 years.
• Golden Gate Bridge, California. Collision expected once every 481 years.
• John A. Blatnik Bridge, Minnesota/Wisconsin. Collision expected once every 634 years.
The engineers noted that according to their calculations, the Key Bridge “would have been among the 10 most vulnerable bridges.” Adding it would likely have been hit by a ship “within 48 years.” During the bridge’s 46 years, it had only sustained one other minor ship collision before the devastating collapse.
Despite the dire warning, Shields noted that “no two bridges are the same,” underscoring that a large ship collision doesn’t always equate to a bridge collapse.
The engineers suggested that to lower the risk of collisions, it is essential to “keep ship traffic away from piers,” adding that they should be outfitted with “robust protections,” including structural “dolphins.”
Following the 1980 deadly ship collision and collapse of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay, engineers incorporated several concrete dolphins to act as a barrier between ships and the bridge’s main supports.
Wednesday marks one year since the Key Bridge collapse, where the container ship Dali collided with the bridge in the early morning hours, killing six construction workers.
Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin has faced pushback from Virginia Senate Democrats, who have rejected 30 of his appointments to public boards and commissions in the past year—three times the number blocked during former Gov. Ralph Northam’s term. Virginia law empowers governors to appoint and remove members from around 300 boards, with appointments vetted and confirmed by the General Assembly. Controversies have arisen about whether rejected appointees may continue serving until the legislature reconvenes, prompting a lawsuit by Senate Democrats. Appointment processes involve candidate applications or nominations, with the governor’s selections often reflecting their background and political support.
Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin and Virginia Democrats have brokered many deals during his soon-ending four-year term, but have also frequently been at odds on policy issues, reflected most recently in the legislature’s rejection of several of the governor’s appointments to Virginia’s governing boards and commissions.
Virginia law gives governors the power to appoint and remove people to these groups. Like his predecessors, Youngkin has appointed hundreds of people to serve on roughly 300 public commissions and boards.
Over the past year, Senate Democrats have rejected 30 of Youngkin’s appointments to boards and commissions, primarily to the Board of Education and governing boards at Virginia’s public higher education institutions. That is three times as many appointees as the legislature blocked during former Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam’s administration, which ended in 2022.
Now, the board appointments process is being debated publicly and will soon play out in the Fairfax County Courthouse, as officials decide whether the rejected appointees can still serve.
To better understand how the process works, the Mercury spoke with two professors from the University of Richmond and Virginia Commonwealth University about the state laws girding up gubernatorial appointment confirmations.
How may someone be appointed to a governing board or commission?
A candidate can be considered through two methods: self-application or nomination by someone else.
Self-application would require the candidate to consider their area of interest and then complete an application through a web portal managed by the Office of Secretary of the Commonwealth.
Carl Tobias (Photo courtesy of the University of Richmond)
“It’s prestigious, it’s a lot of work, and that’s not everybody’s cup of tea,” said Carl Tobias, law professor at the University of Richmond.
Candidates may also be nominated, including by a member of the governor’s administration, and be submitted through the web portal. These roles are traditionally nonpartisan, although they can be recommended to join a board by a Democratic or Republican administration. “But my sense is that (a candidate) is often somebody who’s a pretty strong supporter of the governor,” Tobias said.
Alex Keena, associate professor of political science at VCU, said there can be several vacancies in a single year due to term limits on appointments.
“They’re about 900 appointments made in a typical year, so there’s constant vacancies. Some of those are because these positions are term-limited, or appointments last for a designated amount of time, and other times people leave,” Keena said.
Most of Virginia’s boards and commissions have specific appointment qualifications outlined in the Code of Virginia. All candidates are also required to meet the state’s Code of Conduct. Successful candidates will later be required to complete a financial disclosure statement. Board appointees are voluntary roles, with some exceptions, but are sometimes reimbursed for travel expenses.
What is the governor’s role?
Simply put, the governor can appoint candidates to governing boards and commissions, and even nominate them. The three types of boards and commissions are advisory, policy and supervisory.
Keena said one of his observations is that each governor’s fields of expertise have helped identify candidates for specific boards. Youngkin comes from a business background that likely informed his opinions on business or commerce-related boards. In contrast, his predecessor, Northam, had experience in the medical field and worked in the Virginia legislature as a senator and then lieutenant governor, roles that probably influenced his appointee choices.
“I think every governor has the leeway to find appointments, however they like, (but) are certainly not bound by this application system,” Keena said.
Alex Keena, associate professor of political science at VCU. (Photo courtesy of the Virginia Commonwealth University)
The governor also has the authority to remove a confirmed appointment from office.
Youngkin recently booted Bert Ellis from the University of Virginia for violating the state’s Code of Conduct for state boards and commissions, as well as the Board of Visitors’ Statement of Visitor Responsibilities.
Ellis’ strong support of eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion policies at UVA triggered protests by the school’s faculty senate, student government council and campus newspaper this year, but Youngkin did not expand on the specific violations that led to his decision to remove Ellis.
According to state law, the governor may remove an appointee from office for several reasons, including failure to carry out the policies of the commonwealth, and may fill the vacancy with an appointee of their choosing, subject to confirmation by the General Assembly.
What is the General Assembly’s role?
After the governor has compiled the list of appointments, the Secretary of the Commonwealth must provide copies of the appointees’ resumes and statements of economic interests to the chairs of the House of Delegates and the Senate Committees on Privileges and Elections.
The Senate typically takes up voting on the appointments before the House of Delegates votes. In certain instances, the lists of appointments have been updated to include additional members.
The state code states that a joint subcommittee, composed of five members from the House and three from the Senate, will be appointed by the respective chairs to review the resumes and statements of economic interests of gubernatorial appointees.
Keena said the state law is not clear on when the General Assembly is supposed to act on appointments. Since Virginia’s legislature is part-time, lawmakers meet annually on the second Tuesday in January, typically for 30 days during odd-numbered years and 60 days during even-numbered years and usually confirm appointments during that time.
The governor can also call back lawmakers for special sessions.
This year’s appointment confirmation process was different. Because the Senate did not recess from its 2024 General Assembly Session, the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections returned on June 9 to take up the governor’s appointments.
By the meeting’s end, Democrats rejected eight appointees, after having rejected nine appointments during the regular session in January.
During the June 9 meeting, Republican lawmakers questioned why the joint subcommittee had not met to review the appointees’ statements and economic interests, as required by state code.
The Senate committee’s attorney replied he was not aware of whether the subcommittee was currently active.
Tobias said that he believes the vetting process by lawmakers adds a “check” on the governor’s power and promotes interaction between the legislative and executive branches. Keena added that vetting candidates has historically been a practice in Virginia and across the country.
“This is just part of checks and balances. The governor has the power to make the appointment, but it needs to be confirmed by the General Assembly, and that’s part of the legislative oversight,” Keena said.
If the General Assembly does not confirm an appointment, Virginia law states no appointment “shall enter upon, or continue in” office after being refused. They shall also not be eligible for reappointment when the General Assembly is not in session.
“If they refuse, then that’s it. You’re done,” Keena said.
That law sets the state forSenate Democrats’ lawsuit on whether leaders at three of Virginia’s universities broke the rules by allowing rejected appointees — including former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli and former state commerce and trade secretary Caren Merrick — to remain on their governing boards after being rejected by the Senate Privileges and Elections Committee.
The governor’s administration believes that the appointees are allowed to continue serving until the General Assembly reconvenes.
Tobias said the state code’s lack of clarity about whether the vote by the Senate Committee on Elections and Privileges represents the entire Senate has led to the contention between the governor’s administration and Senate Democrats.
“It doesn’t say House and Senate. It says General Assembly; so that’s an interesting wrinkle,” Tobias said.
Does the legislature track the number of confirmations?
The House of Delegates does not track the number of appointment confirmations, the Mercury confirmed, nor does the Senate.
However, both chambers keep a record of related actions taken by lawmakers.
As of July 10, the General Assembly has rejected 30 of Youngkin’s 3,523 appointments to Virginia’s boards and commissions. That’s in comparison to his predecessor, Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam, who had 10 of his 2,941 appointees blocked by the legislature.
The totals exclude cabinet and agency appointments.
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Northam’s time in office began when the entire legislature was controlled by Republicans, which rejected only nine appointees; seven of those were for the Board of Regents of the James Monroe Law Office Museum and Memorial Library. However, after two years, Democrats took control of both chambers, rejecting only one appointment.
As for Youngkin, the governor has always faced a Democratic-controlled Senate Committee over the past four years. With his help, Republicans regained control of the House at the start of his term, but lost power to Democrats in late 2023. Most of the rejections have been for public boards and commissions about K-12 education, higher education and the Virginia Parole Board.
Are there any other legal nuances of appointment confirmations?
Yes, the experts said, but they are buried in the state code.
In the 1970s, lawmakers revised the Virginia Constitution to transfer some control of state governance from the legislature to the governor. But they also created inconsistencies regarding when appointments can begin serving on their respective boards and commissions. In many cases, appointments begin serving before they are confirmed.
“It really depends on the board,” Keena said. “There’s general state law that governs the process by which these appointments are made, and the role of the General Assembly, and each board has its own set of rules.”
One law has been revised to establish a special process that allows the governor to make recess appointments to the Board of Education, according to Keena. However, the law governing the boards of Virginia’s higher education institutions does not include specific language regarding the power to appoint someone to fill a vacancy.
Not all of the roughly 300 boards have a special process for appointing vacancies. Keena said such a process could be added to state code due to the size of the board or commission, or the frequency of their meetings during the year.
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Virginia Mercury is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Virginia Mercury maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Samantha Willis for questions: info@virginiamercury.com.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
This article presents a balanced and factual overview of the political dynamics surrounding gubernatorial appointments in Virginia. It covers actions and viewpoints from both Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin and Democratic lawmakers without evident editorializing or partisan language. The inclusion of expert commentary and detailed procedural explanations reflects an attempt to inform readers neutrally about the complexities of state appointments and the checks and balances involved. The article neither champions nor criticizes either side overtly, maintaining a focus on procedural facts and legal context, which characterizes a centrist, neutral reporting style.
www.youtube.com – NBC4 Washington – 2025-07-13 01:02:55
SUMMARY: The Bladensburg Peace Cross, a 40-foot memorial honoring 49 Prince George’s County service members killed in World War One, celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2025. Erected in 1925 by local citizens, the American Legion, and Gold Star Mothers, it stands as a symbol of sacrifice and freedom. The memorial faced a legal challenge over church-state separation but was preserved after a 2019 Supreme Court ruling that recognized its historical significance beyond religion. Local leaders, including Council Member Jolene Ivey and County Executive Aisha Braveboy, commemorated the milestone, emphasizing gratitude for veterans and the memorial’s lasting legacy.
The Bladensburg Peace Cross memorial, which honors the lives of Prince George’s County servicemen killed in World War I, is celebrating 100 years. News4’s Jessica Albert reports.
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NBC4 Washington / WRC-TV is the No. 1 broadcast television station and the home of the most-watched local news in Washington, D.C. The station leads the market in providing timely and breaking news and information in text, video and graphics across more than 15 platforms including NBCWashington.com, the NBC4 app, NBC4 streaming news channel, newsletters, and social media.
www.youtube.com – NBC4 Washington – 2025-07-11 12:53:52
SUMMARY: Tomorrow night, a memorial will be held at Hillstone Apartments in Southeast to mark 25 years since Susan Gross’s 1999 murder near Union Station, DC. Susan, 24, was found stabbed to death in her basement apartment. Police arrested 70-year-old George Mudd, a neighbor, after DNA evidence was rediscovered last year. The cold case had stalled partly because the FBI lost crucial DNA data. Susan’s friends appreciate the arrest but remain upset by past media portrayals focusing unfairly on her former dancing job. Despite the tragedy, they hope the new coverage reflects her more accurately and respectfully.
Loved ones of Susan Cvengros are speaking out about how news coverage of the cold case made much out of the fact that she previously worked as a dancer at a club in Georgetown. News4’s Jackie Bensen reports.
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NBC4 Washington / WRC-TV is the No. 1 broadcast television station and the home of the most-watched local news in Washington, D.C. The station leads the market in providing timely and breaking news and information in text, video and graphics across more than 15 platforms including NBCWashington.com, the NBC4 app, NBC4 streaming news channel, newsletters, and social media.
