Officials said that the Port of Baltimore’s commercial shipping traffic is expected to return to its normal levels by the end of next month. The channel was fully reopened for the first week since the collapse of Francis Scott Key Bridge, in March.

“I have waited to say this every day for 11 weeks. Maryland, the Fort McHenry Channel has been cleared and the Port of Baltimore has reopened its doors for business,” said Gov. Wes Moore highlighted the milestone at a news conference held on the water.

As the governor spoke a passing vessel blew its horn.

Moore asked, “Do you hear that?” “That is a beautiful sound.”

Behind him, giant cranes lifted the shipping containers off the deck of an docked cargo vessel and dropped them on land.

After the deadly collapse of March, many shipping companies rerouted cargo to other ports. The collapse of the Patapsco River in Baltimore caused most maritime traffic to be halted. Crews worked round the clock to remove an estimated 50,000 tonnes of steel and concrete that had fallen.

The total cost of the salvage operation is estimated at $160 million. Federal, state, and local agencies are all involved.

Officials said that companies that avoided Baltimore during the cleaning will likely return now that the channel is back to its original width and depth. The port, which processes the most cars and farm equipment in the country, should be back to normal by mid-July.

During a press briefing this week, U.S. Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg stated that all the rerouted traffic “belongs to Baltimore today.” “We have all the indications that this is happening, but we will reinforce that expectation when we speak to players up and down supply chains.”

In recent weeks, crews were able reopen sections of the deep-draft canal in phases. This allowed for some commercial traffic to resume. Officials said that some cruise ships and large containers ships have already passed.

The collapse and its economic ripples have affected the jobs of thousands of longshoremen and truckers, as well as small business owners, far beyond the Baltimore area. State officials helped set up several relief programs in order to keep businesses and people employed immediately after the collapse.

Scott Cowan, the president of International Longshoreman’s Association Local 333 which represents Baltimore port employees, said, “We were a hurt port.” He said that in a competitive market, other ports wanted to take Baltimore’s goods.

Cowan said that reopening the channel would keep thousands of longshoremen employed.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is estimated to have spent up to $75 million on salvage operations, while the Coast Guard has spent $24 million so far to open the main canal. Maryland used federal emergency funds of about $60 million to open three smaller channels outside the main channel.

Officials have estimated that the cost of rebuilding the bridge could be as high as $2 billion. Officials hope to have it completed by 2028.

The President Joe Biden pledged that the federal funding would cover the entire cost of rebuilding. However, officials said that Congress has yet to approve the funding.

In a Tuesday statement, Biden praised everyone involved in the recovery efforts.

He said, “Baltimore is able to count on us for support at every step. We will continue to be there until the bridge has been rebuilt.”

The cargo ship Dali lost its power and crashed into the critical support column of Francis Scott Key Bridge early on March 26. This collapsed the span, and sent six roadwork crew members plunging to death.

An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board found that the vessel had experienced power outages prior to its departure, but the exact cause of the electrical problems has yet to be determined. The FBI is also conducting an investigation.

The Dali was stuck in the wreckage of the Dali for almost two months with a massive steel beam draped across its damaged front. It was only refloated on May 20 and guided back into port. This allowed officials to open up a channel 50 feet deep and 400 foot wide, large enough for the majority of commercial vessels.

The entire federal shipping channel is 700 feet in width. Officials have announced that two-way traffic is now possible, and additional safety measures have been lifted due to the increased width.