Sec. Buttigieg on Key Bridge Collapse: ‘Any Private Party that Bears Responsibility and Is Accountable Will Have To Be Held Liable’

EXCERPT:

BUTTIGIEG: “Well, it‘s too soon to say what all of the liability findings will be, although that‘s another piece of what‘s at stake in the investigations that law enforcement and NTSB are pursuing right now. What I will say is, of course, any private party that bears responsibility and is accountable will have to be held liable. We just can‘t wait for that process to play out to get the funds out that are going to get this bridge back up and this port reopened. So, of course, we will expect that kind of accountability when the time comes. But in the meantime, we‘re going to make sure that those federal resources are put together upfront so that nothing unnecessarily delays the roadway back to normal. Workers are counting on it, people who depend on these shipments, whether they realize it or not, they are counting on it. And about 30,000 vehicles a day that go over that bridge, they‘re counting on us doing everything in our power to get them back to normal. It will not be quick and it will not be easy, but we’re committed to do it as long as it takes.”