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Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed early on Tuesday morning after a strong impact from a container ship, and six construction workers have been presumed dead. Maryland Governor Wes Moore declared a state of emergency after the incident, as that bridge is a crucial part of Interstate 695, which is known as the Baltimore Beltway. Chaos later ensued as roads came to a halt when citizens of Baltimore attempted to bypass the bridge, and the entire section of I-695 has been shut down, as the entire bridge has fallen into the Patapsco River.
In total, the entire bridge was about 1.6 miles long and four lanes wide, and its construction was finished in 1977, making it a fairly old bridge.
Six construction workers were reportedly fixing potholes on the bridge at around 1:30 am when a 985-foot ship, named The Dali, lost all engine power shortly after leaving the Baltimore port, just half an hour into its journey towards Colombo, Sri Lanka. It sent out a mayday call, but it is still unknown why the construction crew on the bridge did not move off of the bridge upon hearing that call. The ship lost control and was not able to turn, leading to its crash into one of the central piers of the bridge.
The piers are the main supports of the bridge, and if one falls, the entire bridge goes down. Within 30 seconds of the impact from the ship, the entire central section of the bridge had fallen into the river, showing how fast steel bridges can crumple when their supports are taken out. Normally, these piers have deflectors, widely known as fenders, to protect the supports from any possible impacts from a ship, but this bridge did not seem to have that protection. Engineers are looking into the lack of protective barriers for the piers, and any that may have been in place were certainly not strong enough to stop a large ship like The Dali.
Amid these concerns over the bridge's questionable structural integrity, officials are conducting a full-scale investigation into the collapse.
Unfortunately, the Coast Guard has ended their 18-hour search-and-rescue operation for the workers that fell into the water, as they would have found the workers by now if they were still alive. Also, the horrible searching conditions did not help-- thick fog covered the area and there were metal structures teetering above the water, making conditions unsafe for rescuers. Due to this, they have sadly been presumed dead.
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