People and vehicles fall into water as Baltimore bridge collapses after being hit by ship
A cargo ship collided with a significant bridge in Baltimore, causing it to collapse.
Video footage captures a significant portion of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which spans 1.6 miles, plunging into the Patapsco River after a crash at approximately 1:30 am local time (5:30 am in the UK).
Cars plunging from the overpass can be observed in the video.
The fire department in Baltimore reported that they were looking for at least seven individuals through their emergency response teams.
Stay up-to-date with the latest news on the Baltimore bridge by following our live updates.
The primary concern of the Baltimore City Fire Department at present, according to Chief Kevin Cartwright who oversees communications, is centered on rescuing and retrieving those individuals in need.
He mentioned that it was still too soon to determine the total number of individuals impacted, but referred to the incident as an "evolving occurrence of multiple casualties".
According to Mr Cartwright, it seems that there were "certain goods or objects hanging from the bridge," which caused hazardous and unsteady circumstances. Therefore, emergency responders were moving with care and caution.
"He said that this is an urgent situation."
During the incident, the vessel named Dali, which is a type of boat used for carrying huge quantities of cargo, was en route to the city of Colombo located in Sri Lanka.
The ship with the flag of Singapore stopped at the bridge according to the information gathered by MarineTraffic.
According to the information, the tug called Eric Mcallister was the initial vessel to reach the location about 10 minutes after the incident occurred.
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A second tug named Bridget Mcallister and a search and rescue boat arrived approximately 25 minutes after the bridge collision.
Currently, there are a minimum of 10 watercrafts participating in the operation to save individuals.
According to Synergy Marine Group, the corporation in possession of the container vessel, all team members, in addition to the two navigators, have been identified and there were no documented cases of harm.
The corporation stated that they have not yet established the precise reason for the occurrence.
A representative from the Baltimore Police Department informed NBC News, Sky News' US partner network, that they received a report at 1:35 am regarding a bridge collapse with some workers likely being submerged in water.
The mayor of Baltimore named Brandon M Scott stated that the people in charge of emergency services were at the location and they were making an effort to save those who needed help.
Johnny Olszewski, the executive of Baltimore county, mentioned that he communicated with the head of the fire department and the manager of emergency operations.
Mr. Olszewski requested that everyone keep the affected people in their prayers.
According to the transportation officials in Maryland, there has been a complete shutdown of all lanes across the bridge on Interstate 695. As a result, the traffic is being redirected to other routes.
The Key Bridge, which was constructed in 1977, is commonly known by the residents of the area.
As per the National Steel Bridge Alliance, this bridge happens to be among the longest unbroken truss bridges worldwide.
