The container ship, 300 meters long, hit a pillar of a motorway bridge during the night from Monday to Tuesday. Several vehicles and their occupants were dragged into the collapse of the building.
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The bridge Francis Scott Key from Baltimore (Maryland, United States) collapsed after being struck by a ship on the night of Monday March 25 to Tuesday March 26. The container ship, 300 meters long, hit a pillar of the building. In the space of a few seconds, almost the entire 2.5 kilometer long bridge collapsed, dragging down vehicles and people. individuals in his fall. Emergency services are searching for at least seven people in the water. Franceinfo summarizes what we know about this disaster.
A Singaporean cargo ship caused the collapse
It was 1:30 a.m. (6:30 a.m. Paris time) when the ship hit the Francis Scott Key Bridge. On video surveillance images, we see the boat hitting a pillar of the bridge and causing a large part of the metal structure of the structure to fall into the water. We also see lights that appear to be those of vehicles traveling on the bridge, before it deforms and falls in pieces.
According to the VesselFinder website, this is the Dalí. This ship, flying the Singaporean flag, was heading towards Sri Lanka where it was due to arrive on April 22. He had set sail about thirty minutes before. The container ship was not captained by its own crew but by local pilots called in specifically to avoid accidents like the one that occurred Tuesday morning. “Pilots fly ships in and out of Baltimore Harbor.”explained Maryland Transportation Secretary Paul Wiedefeld.
Danish shipping giant Maersk confirmed it had chartered the vessel, operated by shipping company Synergy Group. “We are horrified by what happened in Baltimore and we send our thoughts to those affected”, we can read in a press release. The ship’s managers assure that there are no injuries among those on board. “All members of the crew, including the two pilots, have been found and no injuries have been reported”writes Synergy Marine Group on its website.
Wes Moore, the governor of Maryland, announced on Tuesday that the container ship had a “electric problem”. “We can confirm that the crew informed the authorities of a power supply problem,” did he declare.
Two people taken out of the water, at least seven others still wanted
At midday, the crew members were still on board the Dalí. “There was communication between the ship’s crew and the coast guard”said Baltimore Fire Chief James Wallace.
During this same press conference, James Wallace reported that two people were able to be pulled out of the water. The first was not injured, but the other was taken to hospital in serious condition. He also added that rescue operations were continuing, particularly to find “seven people at this stage.”
The authorities specified that workers, responsible for maintaining the building, were on the bridge at the time of the impact. For their part, the American Coast Guard (USCG) confirmed that vehicles had indeed fallen into the water. Some have since been detected using sonar. The precise number of vehicles is still unknown. “It’s a tragedy you can never imagine,” said Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott. According to him, the video of the collapse “looks like something from an action movie.” The American presidency, too, “monitor closely” the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, a White House official told CNN.
Major emergency services undertaken at the scene of the accident
The governor of the State of Maryland declared a state of emergency. “We are working with an interagency team to rapidly deploy the Biden Administration’s federal resources.”explains Wes Moore.
“Numerous Baltimore County water rescue and dive teams are deployed to the scene of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse and continue to provide assistance,” asserted on the social network the Baltimore County Fire Department.
To allow rescuers to work from the air, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a no-fly order in the area. The FAA also warned people not to fly drones in the area.
The causes of the shock are not yet determined
At this stage, “There is absolutely no indication that this was a terrorist act, that this was a deliberate act”said Richard Worley, Baltimore police chief.
On CNN, Paul Wiedefeld, Maryland’s Secretary of Transportation, offered a lead. He said the ship appeared to have deviated from its course just before impact. “It obviously should have been in the main channel, which is under that main span.”
Baltimore Harbor paralyzed
Maritime transport was “suspended until further notice” in Baltimore Harbor. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics ranked it in 2021 as 20e largest port in the United States. Among the goods that pass through the most are automobiles, light trucks, agricultural machinery and construction equipment. According to a Maryland state government report released in November, the Francis Scott Key Bridge, built in the 1970s, was used by more than 12 million vehicles in 2023.
The collapse of the Francis Scott Key bridge will, in fact, have consequences on global traffic, assures Georgios Hatzimanolis, who analyzes global maritime transport for the MarineTraffic website. “We expect a knock-on effect, but it’s a little too early to say what the impact will be”he declared to the New York Times. Ships heading to Baltimore with cargo to unload could instead go to ports in New Jersey or North Carolina.