Baltimore Key Bridge collapse: vehicles fall into water after ship hits bridge

Following an early-morning collision by a container ship on Tuesday that sent several cars into the water, a significant bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, broke and fell. Following reports that a huge vessel had slammed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge, the Baltimore fire department announced that it was looking for at least seven people who were thought to be in the water.

A video that was uploaded on X seemed to show the ship hitting one of the key supports of the 2.6 km long bridge. As a result, many cars collapsed into the Patapsco River below. Thick, black smoke plumes rose into the air as section of the bridge seemed to collapse over the ship and catch fire.Due to an issue, all lanes were closed on the I-695 Key Bridge in both directions. The Maryland Transportation Authority posted on X, "Traffic is being rerouted. The ship struck and collapsed the I-695 Key Bridge. Scene is active," it was later added.

According to Kevin Cartwright, director of communications for the Baltimore fire department, calls to 911 had started coming in at 1:30 in the morning regarding a vessel that was leaving Baltimore and had impacted a column on the bridge, causing it to collapse. At the time, there were several cars on the bridge, including a tractor-trailer-sized one. Cartwright stated, "At this time, our main priority is attempting to save and recover these people." Although the exact number of casualties was still unknown, he described the fall as a "developing mass casualty event."

According to Cartwright, there seemed to be "some cargo or retainers" hanging from the bridge, which made the situation dangerous and unstable and made the rescue effort more difficult. He declared, "This is a dire emergency." According to Matthew West, a petty officer first class of the Baltimore coast guard, the coast guard was notified of an impact at 1:27 a.m. ET, as reported by the New York Times. West said that the cargo ship, the Dali, flying the Singapore flag and measuring 948 feet (290 meters), had collided with the Interstate 695 bridge.

The Dali had left Baltimore at 1am and was heading for the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, according to the maritime data platform MarineTraffic.

The management of the ship, Synergy Marine Group, verified that the ship had struck one of the bridge's supports. It claimed there had been no reports of any injuries and that every member of the crew, including the two pilots, had been accounted for.

The statement read, "The Dali has now mobilized its qualified individual incident response service, even though the exact cause of the incident is still unknown." Emergency responders were on the site, according to county executive Johnny Olszewski Jr. and mayor of Baltimore Brandon M. Scott. The Patapsco River is a crucial conduit that, along with the Port of Baltimore, serves as a major maritime hub on the east coast of the United States. The bridge was constructed in 1977. It bears the name of the man who wrote The Star-Spangled Banner, the national song of the United States.