This fatal and costly disaster could and should have been avoided,” according to a claim filed by White and Williams on behalf of Brawner Builders Inc. and Zurich American Insurance Co. “This catastrophic event resulted in the deaths of six Brawner workers and serious and permanent injuries to a seventh worker and halted all commercial traffic into and out of the Port of Baltimore.

The ship that hit the Key Bridge, killing six, had known issues that should have been fixed or reported before it set sail, the Justice Department said.