All 6 workers missing after Baltimore bridge collapse presumed dead

All six workers missing after a Baltimore bridge collapsed Tuesday are presumed dead and the search for them has been suspended until Wednesday morning.

Col. Roland L. Butler Jr., superintendent for Maryland State Police, said Tuesday evening that the search and rescue mission was transitioning to one of search and recovery. He said divers would return to the site at 6 a.m. ET.

The six people unaccounted for were part of a construction crew repairing potholes on the bridge. Police had stopped traffic on the bridge just before the crash and said there is no evidence that anyone went into the water other than the workers.

Butler said structural engineers will help formulate a plan for divers to navigate the dangerous wreckage and avoid the sharp steel debris, which could puncture a diver’s suit or oxygen line.

The construction workers were repairing potholes on the bridge when the cargo vessel Dali smashed into one of its supports around 1:30 a.m. ET.

The steel bridge plunged into the frigid Patapsco River below, with one twisted section coming to rest on top of the vessel’s bow.

The crew had issued a mayday call moments before the crash. With the ship barrelling toward the bridge at “a very, very rapid speed,” Maryland Governor Wes Moore said authorities had just enough time to stop cars from coming over the bridge.

“These people are heroes,” Moore said. “They saved lives last night.”

Watch the moment when a ship hits a bridge in Baltimore, triggering collapse

A container ship hit a major bridge in Baltimore, causing several vehicles to fall into the Patapsco River. Fire officials initially said crews were searching for at least seven people in the waters.

The state’s transportation secretary said the six workers were filling potholes on the bridge, which carries 11.3 million vehicles a year and leads to the busy Port of Baltimore.

Jeffrey Pritzker, executive vice-president of Brawner Builders, which employed the workers, said they were in the middle of the bridge when it came down.

Guatemala’s consulate in Maryland said in a statement that two of the workers were Guatemalan citizens. It did not provide their names but said consular officials were in contact with local authorities and assisting the families.

Honduras’ Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Antonio García told The Associated Press that a Honduran citizen, Maynor Yassir Suazo Sandoval, was missing.

He said he had been in contact with Suazo’s family.

And the Washington Consulate of Mexico said via the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that citizens of that nation were also among the missing. It did not say how many.

No bodies have been recovered.

‘An unthinkable tragedy’

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) held back Tuesday to make room for the search, but said a team of 24 people will begin their investigation by gathering information from the command centre until they are able to get to the ship.

“We chose not to board the vessel today to allow time for the search and recovery,” said Jennifer Homendy, the board’s chair.

Rescuers pulled two people out of the water after the collapse. One was treated at a hospital and released hours later. Multiple vehicles also went into the river, although authorities did not believe anyone was inside.

“It looked like something out of an action movie,” Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said, calling it “an unthinkable tragedy.”

Homendy told reporters that nautical operations experts with the NTSB will gather information on the vessel’s safety history, its owner and its operations in the hours leading up to the crash.

Investigators will also be taking “recorders” from the ship, though Homendy said she could not provide more detail on which recorders, or what they might have captured.

Structural engineers, highway personnel and a “human performance” expert will also participate in the investigation, she said.

The temperature in the river was about 8 C early Tuesday, according to a buoy that collects data for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

A bridge collapse from ship impact ‘extremely unusual’: expert

Replacing the collapsed bridge in Baltimore could take a number of years, says David Knight, a U.K. engineering specialist. He expects a significant investigation and a ‘design period’ before construction of an entirely new structure can begin.

Ship was en route to Asia

The Dali was headed from Baltimore to Colombo, Sri Lanka, and sailing under a Singapore flag, according to data from Marine Traffic. The container ship is about 300 metres long and about 48 metres wide, according to the website.

Synergy Marine Group, which manages the ship, confirmed it hit the pillar while under control of one or more pilots — local specialists who help guide vessels safely in and out of ports. The ship is owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd.

Synergy said all crew members and the two pilots on board were accounted for, and that there were no reports of any injuries.

U.S. President Joe Biden expressed condolences to victims and their relatives for the “terrible accident,” and said the federal government would provide whatever assistance was necessary to help in the search and rescue effort. He said he intends for the federal government to pick up the entire cost of rebuilding.

“This is going to take some time,” Biden said.

Last year, the Port of Baltimore handled a record 52.3 million tons of foreign cargo worth $80 billion US, according to the state.

The head of a supply chain management company said Americans should expect shortages of some goods because of the impact the collapse will have on ocean container shipping and East Coast trucking.

“It’s not just the Port of Baltimore that’s going to be impacted,” said Ryan Petersen, CEO of Flexport.

Baltimore Police Department Commissioner Richard Corley said there was “absolutely no indication” the contact with the bridge was intentional.

The FBI was on the scene, and said there was no credible information to suggest terrorism.