Baltimore bridge collapse: 6 workers missing presumed dead

The six people who were missing after the Key bridge collapsed are now presumed dead, and the US Coast Guard has said the search for survivors has been suspended.

"Based on the length of time that we've gone in this search, the extensive search efforts that we put into it, the water temperature... at this point we do not believe that we're going to find any of these individuals still alive," US Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath told a press conference.

Water temperatures Baltimore harbor are believed to be around 47 degrees Fahrenheit (8 degrees Celsius).

Roland Butler, superintendent for Maryland State Police, said on Monday evening that the search and rescue mission was transitioning to one of search and recovery.

Officials said eight road workers repairing potholes were believed to have been on the bridge at the time of collision and collapse, which was around 1:30 a.m. local time Tuesday morning. 

US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said rebuilding the collapsed Baltimore bridge will not be quick or easy.

"This is no ordinary bridge. This is one of the cathedrals of American infrastructure," Buttigieg said at a news conference in Baltimore. "It has been part of the skyline for this region for longer than many of us have been alive."

Buttigieg thanked first responders, including those still in the water as he spoke, and offered comfort to those "who woke up today to the news that no one wants to receive." This is an excruciating day for several families," he said.

Maryland Governor Wes Moore said at the same news conference that he had spent time with the families of victims. "The strength of these families is absolutely remarkable," he said. 

The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will lead the investigation into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse after the cargo ship Dali struck one of its support pylons.

NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy and a team of experts were in Baltimore to investigate the incident.

She said the investigators would, however, "allow some time for the search and recovery."

Homendy said the structure of the collapsed Baltimore bridge will be investigated. They will also look into reports that the ship lost power before it collided with the support beam.

"We have to verify through our investigation that that was part of the contributing cause here," she said, adding it is "too early to tell."

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), where the Dali is flagged, said they would assist US authorities in the investigation. 

In a press statement, the MPA said the Dali's management company, Synergy Marine Pte Ltd, reported that just prior to the incident, the vessel "experienced momentary loss of propulsion. As a result, it was unable to maintain the desired heading" and collided with the  bridge.

"The vessel was reported to have dropped its anchors as part of the vessel’s emergency procedures prior to its impact with the bridge. The vessel was under pilotage at the time of the incident," the statement added. 

US automakers will re-route affected shipments after the bridge collapse in Baltimore, but the companies said the impact will be minimal.

"We expect the situation to have minimal impact to our operations. We are working to re-route any vehicle shipments to other ports," General Motors said in a statement.

"It's going to have an impact," Ford Chief Financial Officer John Lawler told Bloomberg. "We'll have to divert parts to other ports... It will probably lengthen the supply chain a bit."

The Port of Baltimore is the busiest US port for car shipments, handling more than 750,000 vehicles in 2022, according to port data.

Volkswagen Group of America said it was not impacted because its Baltimore facility is located on the easterly seaboard of the bridge collapse, while Nissan said it did not expect a significant impact at this time.

BMW said the car docks are located on the ocean side of the harbor and said its land-side truck traffic would be re-routed.

Mercedes said the incidents did not impact vehicle exports or the company's parts supply at its  Tuscaloosa, Alabama, plant, and it was monitoring the situation.

US President Joe Biden emphasized the economic importance of the bridge and said that "the federal government will pay for the entire cost of repairs.

Asked by a reporter if the shipping company should be held responsible for the costs, he said: "That could be, but we are not going to wait for that to happen."

Biden said that 800,000 vehicles pass through the Port of Baltimore every year and that 15,000 jobs depend on the port.

"We're going to protect those jobs and those workers," he promised.

Finally, he said the US Army Engineer Corp would be leading the operation to clear the port and that he would be visiting himself in the near future.

US President Joe Biden has expressed his gratitude to the "the brave rescuers who rushed to the scene" and praised traffic controllers who, responding to the ship's mayday call, "closed the bridge to traffic before it was struck, inevitably saving lives."

To the people of Baltimore, he said: "We're with you and we're not leaving."

US President Joe Biden has called the Baltimore bridge collapse a "terrible accident" and said there was "no reason to believe it was intentional."

He said that six people were still unaccounted for and that the search and rescue operation is ongoing.

Promising the full support of the federal government, he said "we are going to rebuild this bridge together."

Six people are still missing following the collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge after a container ship collided with one of its pylons, said state Secretary of Transportation, Paul Wiedefeld.

Rescuers pulled out two survivors, one of whom was being treated in hospital.

Authorities believe eight people were on the bridge when it was hit.

Wiedefeld said that all six missing people are believed to be construction workers, who were working on the bridge repairing potholes, at the time of the crash. 

Maryland's governor, Wes Moore, declared an emergency following the collapse.

Temperatures in the water were around 8 degrees Celsius (47 Fahrenheit) at the time of the apparent accident, levels that can be fatal after just a few hours or immersion, or less, and that are liable to rapidly lead to exhaustion or unconsciousness.

While the cause of the ship crashing into a major Baltimore bridge is under investigation, Governor of Maryland Wes Moore told a media briefing that the container ship lost power before colliding with the structure.

Moore said that the vessels operators had issued a mayday call in the moments before the collision.

It was moving at a "rapid" 8 knots (9 miles per hour).

The operators were able to alert authorities that the vessel had lost power, allowing officials to limit traffic on the bridge before the crash.

"I'm thankful for the folks who — once the warning came up and once notification came up that there was a mayday — who literally by being able to stop cars from coming over the bridge. These people are heroes, they saved lives last night," Moore said.

Local officials say the collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge is likely to cause substantial economic damage for as long as it continues to obstruct shipping operations at the country's ninth busiest harbor.

All maritime traffic — which in 2023 accounted for 52 million tons of cargo worth some $80 billion (€73.7 billion) according to Maryland Governor Wes Moore's office — has been halted.

"Losing this bridge will devastate the entire area, as well as the entire East Coast," state Senator Johnny Ray Salling said.

Highway signs as far south as Virginia warned drivers of delays associated with the closure of the bridge.

Baltimore is the deepest harbor in Chesapeake Bay, and handles high volumes of cars. According to state figures, the Port of Baltimore supports over 15,000 direct jobs and over 139,000 jobs connected to port work.

The White House said there was no indication of "any nefarious intent" in the Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore.

"Our hearts go out to the families of those who remain missing as a result of this horrific incident," the White House said in a statement

It added that senior officials were in touch with the Maryland governor and Baltimore mayor to offer any needed assistance.

Maryland has declared a state of emergency, which eases access to federal resources in assisting response and rescue efforts. 

The Baltimore branch of the FBI has also ruled out terrorism.

"There is no specific and credible information to suggest any ties to terrorism at this time," it said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter.

FBI investigators were also on the scene of the incident. 

The Baltimore police also earlier said there was no indication of terrorism.

Baltimore Fire Department Chief James Wallace said Tuesday morning that authorities are "still very much in an active search and rescue posture" after the Key bridge collapsed into Baltimore's Patapsco River at the mouth of a large harbor.

The huge emergency response involves numerous agencies contributing personnel and assets.

"We are deploying assets in response," US Coast Guard officer Matthew West told the Baltimore Sun newspaper.

These include two response boats from Curtis Bay and one from Annapolis, along with a helicopter.

Wallace said in the press conference that sonar had "detected the presence of vehicles" in the harbor, but declined to estimate how many. 

Water temperatures in the harbor are believed to be around 47 degrees Fahrenheit (8 degrees Celsius).

Maryland Governor Wes Moore has also declared a state of emergency in response.

"We are thankful for the brave men and women who are carrying out efforts to rescue those involved and pray for everyone’s safety," Moore wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Baltimore police were still looking into the cause of the collapse of Key Bridge, but terrorism was not on the table, Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said.

"There is absolutely no indication that there's any terrorism, that this was done on purpose," Worley said in a press conference, answering a journalist's question.

Baltimore Fire Chief James Wallace said two people were pulled from the water, adding that one was in serious condition.

Authorities were "may be looking for upwards of seven people," Wallace said in a press conference on Tuesday, adding that the number could change.

"This is a very large incident," Wallace said, adding that multiple air and sea assets from numerous agencies were attending to the incident.

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott described the incident as an "unthinkable tragedy."

"Never would you think that you would see, physically see, the Key Bridge tumble down like that. It looked like something out of an action movie," he said.