Six workers are missing and presumed dead after a cargo ship collision caused a Baltimore bridge collapse, leading to a major port closure. Search-and-rescue efforts have ceased due to dangerous conditions. The incident impacts car and coal supply chains, with over 2.5 million tons of coal at risk. Authorities plan to recover the workers’ remains.
Six workers are missing and presumed dead following the collapse of a bridge in Baltimore Harbor early Tuesday. The incident occurred after a massive cargo ship, disabled by a power loss, collided with the structure, leading to the closure of one of the busiest ports on the U.S. Eastern Seaboard.
Due to the increasingly perilous conditions in the dark and debris-filled waters, dive teams have ceased active search-and-rescue operations approximately 18 hours after the accident, as confirmed by officials from the U.S. Coast Guard and Maryland State Police.
Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath said that due to the freezing water temperatures and the passage of time since the accident, there is no expectation of finding the missing workers alive.
Colonel Roland Butler of the State Police mentioned that authorities aim to deploy divers back into the water after sunrise on Wednesday to retrieve the remains of the workers.
Meanwhile, the bridge collapse is now feared to lead to severe consequences and impact supply chain of cars to coal. Up to 2.5 million tons of coal, along with hundreds of cars manufactured by Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co., as well as lumber and gypsum, face potential disruption following the collision of the container ship Dali with Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing it to collapse.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg emphasized that the closure of one of the nation’s busiest shipping lanes, until further notice, would significantly disrupt supply chains for an extended period. The Port of Baltimore, according to port data, manages more automobile cargo than any other U.S. port, with over 750,000 vehicles handled in 2022.
