The first two bodies have been recovered from the Patapsco River after the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, authorities said at a press conference on Wednesday. State officials announced they have suspended recovery operations, citing safety concerns for divers and an inability to reach vehicles still trapped within the submerged remains of the structure. The mission is now a salvage one, officials said.
The men have been identified as Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, 35, and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, 26.
All of the construction workers were repairing potholes on the bridge when the Dali container cargo ship collided with one of its supports and brought it down in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Two of the men were immediately rescued from the scene.
A rescue effort was called off on Tuesday night as Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath said there was no hope of finding the men alive due to the frigid water and the length of time since the accident.
Officials say they do not know when the bridge or port will be reopened, sparking fears about the disruption to trade likely to result from the tragedy.
The busy Port of Baltimore employs 8,000 area residents, generating $2m a day in wages.
Did ‘dirty fuel’ play a role in Baltimore bridge collapse?
Minutes before the collision, the propulsion system on board the vessel went down, alarms sounded, and the vessel began veering towards a support for the bridge.
Read more by Louise Boyle:
Michelle Del Rey28 March 2024 22:10
GoFundMe tops $98k for families of Baltimore bridge collapse victims
A fundraiser for the families of the victims of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse has garnered nearly $100,000, just days after the tragedy.
The GoFundMe page had raised over $98,000 by Thursday morning.
The fundraiser, organised by the volunteer group Latino Racial Justice Circle, explained that the cash would be “distributed directly” to the “families of the victims” of the bridge collapse.
Michelle Del Rey28 March 2024 21:55
Six out of eight men have so far been identified
The identities of six out of of the eight victims have been released so far. The construction workers have been identified as Julio Cervantes, Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, Dorian Castillo Cabrera, Miguel Luna, Maynor Suazo and José López.
Mr Cervantes and another unidentified victim survived the tragedy.
Michelle Del Rey28 March 2024 21:39
Baltimore Orioles honour tragedy victims on opening day
Michelle Del Rey28 March 2024 21:10
Cost to repair the bridge likely to reach billions of dollars
AM Best, an insurance service company, is estimating that the cost to rebuild the bridge is likely to be billions of dollars though an official estimate won’t be ready for a while.
“While the total cost of the bridge collapse and associated claims will not be clear for some time, it is likely to run into the billions of dollars,” the company said. “The insurance issued the collapse of the bridge will take a long time to determine and may involve several lines such as property, cargo, liability, trade credit and contingent business interruption.”
Michelle Del Rey28 March 2024 20:48
Maryland makes $60m request to cover the costs of repairs
Maryland Governor Wes Moore made the announcement on X. The funds will go toward debris removal, support mobilization, operations and laying the foundation for a rapid recovery.
Michelle Del Rey28 March 2024 20:18
Press Conference on Key Bridge collapse to happen at 6:15pm ET
Maryland Governor Wes Moore is set to hold a news conference at 6:15pm today. He’ll be joined by US Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen, Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott and representatives of the Maryland State Police, US Coast Guard, US Army Corps of Engineers and Maryland Department of Transportation.
Michelle Del Rey28 March 2024 20:01
Disturbing Baltimore bridge 911 ‘survivor’ call prank spreads on social media
A fake call to the emergency services claiming to be from a driver on the Francis Scott Key Bridge when it collapsed is going viral on social media.
Here’s more from Catherine Shuttleworth for Indy100.
Michelle Del Rey28 March 2024 19:53
Recap: How did the crash occur?
The Maryland Transportation Authority said that it is too early in the investigation to understand the full picture of what caused the collapse.
“It’s what we call a continuous structure every little piece is connected to another – and unfortunately it’s a catastrophic collapse,” they said.
Reports suggest that the Dali had “lost propulsion” as it left the port embarking on its journey, with crew notifying officials that they had lost control of the vessel, ABC reported, citing an unclassified intelligence report.
“The vessel notified MD Department of Transportation (MDOT) that they had lost control of the vessel and an collision with the bridge was possible,” ABC said, quoting the report by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
“The vessel struck the bridge causing a complete collapse.”
However, some have also questioned whether the structural integrity of the bridge itself was strong enough.
Julian Carter, a structural and civil engineering expert, earlier told Sky News that the structures of the bridge were “very weak” at certain points.
Fire officials said earlier that they do not have any information as to whether there was a problem with the 300-metre-long ship, and have not spoken to the pilot of the vessel yet.
Chief Wallace added that he could not confirm if there had been a fuel leakage from the cargo ship.
“We hope as the sun comes up, we will get a much better picture if we do have a fuel spill and what the impact has been so far,” he said.
Gov Moore said on Wednesday that it’s still unclear what caused the ship’s power to go out. “There needs to be accountability to make sure these things do not happen again and that we have a system in place to make sure they don’t,” he said at a press conference.
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy told CBS News on Wednesday that the agency has the voyage data recorder, which can provide “a timeline” of the lead-up to the crash as early as later today. The instrument can also give insights into positioning of the vessel and power loss, she said.
Michelle Del Rey28 March 2024 19:18
Investigators reveal timeline of Francis Scott Key Bridge disaster
Federal investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) have unveiled a more precise timeline of exactly what happened in the runup to the cargo ship’s brutal collision with the Francis Scott Key Bridge in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Here’s the NTSB’s revised timeline of the disaster, given in hours, minutes and seconds after experts’ first full day examining the scene on Wednesday:
12.39am: Dali container ship departs from Seagirt Marine Terminal.
1.07am: It enters Fort McHenry Channel.
1.24.59am: Numerous audible alarms recorded on ship’s bridge audio. Voyage data recorder (VDR) stops recording the vessel’s system data, although it is able to continue taping audio from alternative power source.
1.26.02am: VDR resumes recording ship’s system data after glitch. Steering commands and orders regarding its rudder captured on audio.
1.26.39am: Pilot issues very high frequency (VHF) radio call to nearby tugboats requesting assistance for the stricken vessel. Pilot association dispatcher also notifies Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) duty officer regarding blackout, according to data from latter organisation.
1.27.04am: Pilot orders ship’s port anchor to be dropped and issues additional steering commands.
1.27.25am: Pilot issues radio call over VHF radio, reports that vessel has lost all power and is approaching bridge. Transit authority duty officer radios two of its units — one on each side of bridge — that are already on scene and orders them to close traffic. All lanes shut down.
1.29am: Ship’s speed recorded at just under 8 miles per hour. VDR records 33 seconds of sound consistent with vessel’s smash with bridge. MDTA dash cameras meanwhile capture bridge lights going out.
01.29.39am: Pilot radios US Coast Guard to report bridge is down.
Michelle Del Rey28 March 2024 19:00