BALTIMORE, March 27, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Authorities in Baltimore were set to 
focus on expanding recovery efforts Wednesday after a cargo ship slammed into 
a major bridge, causing it to collapse and leaving six people presumed dead. 

All six were members of a construction crew repairing potholes on the Francis 
Scott Key Bridge in the US East Coast city when the structure was sent 
careening into the Patapsco River at around 1:30 am (0530 GMT).

A desperate search in near-freezing conditions managed to pull two people 
from the choppy waters, but after nearly 16 hours, officials said they had 
given up hope of rescuing the others. 

"At this point we do not believe that we're going to find any of these 
individuals still alive," US Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath told 
reporters as night fell on Tuesday.

He added that responders were transitioning "to a different phase."
Speaking at the same press conference, Maryland Secretary of State Police 
Roland Butler said the focus would shift to a "recovery operation" by 
Wednesday morning.

"We're hoping to put divers in the water and begin a more detailed search to 
do our very best to recover those six missing people," he said. 

After the search effort was called off, Mayor Brandon Scott emphasized the 
need to help families of the victims "get the closure they deserve."
"My heart is with those families tonight and in the days ahead," he said in a 
statement. 

One of the missing workers was father-of-three Miguel Luna, according to 
Casa, a nonprofit that serves immigrant communities.

Luna, from El Salvador, had left for work at 6:30 pm on Monday and never 
returned, Casa said. 

His wife, Maria del Carmen Castellon, told Telemundo 44 that she was 
"devastated" by the wait for any information. 

Two of the other missing workers were from Guatemala, the country's foreign 
ministry said, while local news outlet The Baltimore Banner reported that 
Mexican and Honduran nationals were also among the victims.
"My heart hurts with this situation," said Jesus Campos, a construction 
company employee who said he worked alongside the missing.
"They're human beings and they are my colleagues."
- Attempt to drop anchors -
Footage of the collision showed packed container ship the Dali slamming into 
one of the bridge's supports, causing the 47-year-old structure to collapse 
into one of the busiest US commercial harbors.

Officials stressed that there was no known connection to terrorism, and that 
the preliminary investigation indicated an accident. 

Details emerged on how the crew tried to avert disaster after their 985-foot 
ship lost power and began careening toward the bridge.

"Just prior to the incident, the vessel, Dali, had experienced momentary loss 
of propulsion. As a result, it was unable to maintain the desired heading," 
said the maritime authority for Singapore, where the Dali is flagged.

The authority said the ship's management company, Synergy Marine Pte Ltd, 
reported the crew "dropped anchors" in a last-ditch attempt to hold it back.

The ship had passed two overseas inspections in 2023, the authority said 
Wednesday, adding that a fault monitor gauge was fixed in June. 

Investigators from the authority and Singapore's Transport Safety 
Investigation Bureau were headed to Baltimore on Tuesday to assist the US 
Coast Guard.

US federal investigators expect recordings from the vessel to be critical to 
determine what happened, said Jennifer Homendy, head of the National 
Transportation Safety Board, which is overseeing the investigation.

"Certainly investigations are a priority, certainly environmental 
considerations are a priority, and so is traffic and getting cargo vessels in 
and out of the port of Baltimore," she said. "But right now it's about 
people, it's about families and addressing the needs of those impacted."

- Ninth-busiest US port -
The Francis Scott Key Bridge, named after the poet who penned the lyrics to 
the US national anthem, is an important link in the East Coast highway 
system, used by about 34,000 vehicles every day.

The Port of Baltimore is the ninth-busiest major US port in terms of both 
foreign cargo handled and foreign cargo value, and is directly responsible 
for more than 15,000 jobs, supporting almost 140,000 more.

US President Joe Biden called the collapse a "terrible accident," and pledged 
to get the port reopened and the bridge rebuilt.

There are other bridges and tunnels for drivers to cross the harbor. However, 
the tangled steel barrier now lying half-submerged across the harbor entrance 
blocks almost all maritime traffic.
"There is no question that this will be a major and protracted impact to 
supply chains," US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg warned, adding 
it was "too soon" to know when the port might reopen.