In the United States, Maryland state police has said that the six people who were missing after the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed yesterday in Baltimore, Maryland have been presumed dead. The Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore was rammed by a cargo ship and collapsed into the Patapsco River. Authorities said they are presumed dead due to the water temperature and time that has passed. The Singapore-flagged Dali cargo ship was setting off from the Port of Baltimore to Colombo, Sri Lanka when it apparently lost power and struck a pillar of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. All 22 crew on the ship were Indian. India is a major player in the global seafaring industry. Emergency responders rescued two people from the water.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore hailed the crew as “heroes” and said that their quick response “saved lives” because authorities were able to stop the flow of vehicle traffic onto the bridge in the two minutes between the call and the collision.
US President Joe Biden has said he will seek funds from Congress to rebuild the bridge. The Federal Transportation Safety Agency has said it will launch an investigation into the safety record of the cargo ship as well as the construction and design of the bridge. The collapse has caused all operations at the Port of Baltimore, one of the busiest maritime terminals in the US, to be suspended. The Key Bridge, built in the 1970s, served as the outermost crossing of the Baltimore Harbor.
