Lloyd’s of London chair Bruce Carnegie-Brown said the Baltimore’s bridge crash could turn out to be the largest marine insurance payout of all time.
The Francis Scott Key bridge collapsed after being struck by the Dali cargo ship, operated by Maersk, on Tuesday morning.
Several people have been left missing and presumed dead following the incident, including workers on the bridge at the time, while drivers have been pulled from the river since.
One of the US east coast’s major shipping arteries has been shut, and will likely remain so for some time, following the collapse.
Carnegie-Brown commented he would be “very surprised” if the total cost to insurers was not in the multi-billion dollar region.
“The tragedy has the capacity to become the largest single marine insurance loss ever,” he said.