PANAMA CITY — Since Ferdinand de Lesseps embarked in 1882 on his quest to cut a waterway between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, the Panama Canal has had its moments of mystery and despair.
Landslides, corruption and outbreaks of cholera, malaria and yellow fever that killed more than 22,000 workers doomed the French effort to build the canal. For a while, it seemed as if the jungles of Panama would refuse to be bridled.
American engineers took over the failed project, protecting workers by adopting a then-obscure theory by Cuban epidemiologist Carlos Finlay
that mosquitos carry disease. They also employed smarter engineering and completed the 50-mile canal by 1914.
Walking around this stifling, tropical city, it’s easy to imagine the heat and brutal conditions workers endured more than a century ago as they toiled under the punishing Panamanian sun, forging a path through some of the most inhospitable terrain on earth.
I arrived here recently to witness the official opening of the Panama Canal's expansion, a monumental feat that allows neo-Panamax ships, some of the biggest container ships in the world, to transit through. The enhanced canal could reshape the global shipping map.
It was a well-earned celebration: the $5.4 billion project was overseen by Panamanians and delivered pride — and the prospect of increased revenue — to the Central American country. Salsa music blared and fireworks exploded overhead as the COSCO Shipping Panama, a 694-foot Chinese container ship, slowly made the maiden voyage through the new locks. A Facebook Live broadcast I did via my iPhone in the midst of the celebrations drew “likes” and enthusiastic well-wishers from Singapore, England, Venezuela and other corners of the globe.
But hanging solemnly over the party was a report, published a few days earlier by The New York Times, detailing how questionable engineering decisions may have placed the entire project at risk. The article alleged that the Spanish consortium responsible for the expansion, Grupo Unidos por el Canal, whose winning bid was around $1 billion less than the nearest competitor, cut corners to try to keep the project under budget.
Alarming complaints came from tug boat captains responsible for guiding the massive ships through the canal, who claim the new locks are too narrow to safely escort the ships through. Work stoppages, porous concrete and a risk of earthquakes also plagued the project, the report said.
It wasn’t malaria or landslides. But the jungles of the Isthmus of Panama again seemed to be groaning under the increased presence of more concrete and steel.
At an event hosted by the U.S. embassy here the morning of the expansion inauguration, reporters asked John Feeley, U.S. ambassador to Panama, about the Times report. He said that, after reading the article, he did some research and found that the canal had strong critics dating back to 1908, right through its opening and beyond.
He said he welcomed the robust scrutiny as necessary. But 102 years later, the locks still work. “Personally, I remain very optimistic that this canal will continue to bring benefits to Panama and the world,” he said.
At the inauguration celebration, I met José Peláez, project director for the Spanish consortium that led the expansion project. When I asked him about the Times article, his expression understandably sagged. He said he didn’t feel the article was fair because it quoted a lot of people not directly involved with the project, and stringent quality control measures were used in testing key elements, such as the concrete and locking systems. “I feel very proud about the job that has been done here,” Peláez told me.
As we concluded our talk, he lifted a fist to his chest. “This article ...” he said, and mimed a knife turning into his heart.
There’s no doubt it was a painful read for so many who labored on the massive project. But also a necessary one.
We marvel at how man bends nature to his benefit: Airplanes defy gravity. Rigs extract crude from solid rock. Canals are cut through impassable jungle.
But as we continue to push the boundaries between nature and technology, we should be increasingly vigilant and transparent in monitoring those intersections of man and nature.
Sometimes, nature pushes back.
Jervis is an Austin-based correspondent for USA TODAY.
