LIVE UPDATES: 6 workers presumed dead after Baltimore bridge collapse, coast guard says

Six construction workers are presumed dead following the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge early Tuesday. Coast Guard officials said around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, nearly 18 hours after the bridge collapsed, that the six people are still unaccounted for. Those people are presumed dead, authorities say, and a search and rescue mission is now a recovery mission.THE LATEST RIGHT NOW:• Officials confirmed six people who are missing after the collapse are presumed dead• Two people were initially rescued — one declined treatment and another was taken to, and subsequently discharged from, Shock Trauma• Preliminary investigation shows this was not intentional• Gov. Wes Moore said the crew on the ship notified authorities that they had lost power.• Moore said between a Mayday call and the collapse, officials stopped the flow of traffic so that more cars were not on the bridge, potentially saving lives• Baltimore Beltway\I-695 closed from Glen Burnie to Dundalk (traffic map here)Maryland Gov. Wes Moore declared a state of emergency after a cargo ship, the cargo ship "Dali," crashed into a support structure of the 1.6-mile bridge that carried the Baltimore Beltway\Interstate 695 over the Patapsco River. Its collapse was reported around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.Video posted online shows the entire structure breaking apart in several locations and collapsing. The Associated Press reported the ship caught fire, and thick, black smoke billowed from it. SkyTeam 11 reported the portion of the bridge that collapsed was the steel superstructure and that the concrete bridge appeared to remain intact. Video below: Gov. Moore provides an update early Wednesday morning on recovery efforts6 presumed deadAfter nearly 18 hours of searching, six people are presumed dead. A group of construction workers was on the bridge when it collapsed, officials said. Six of those individuals are unaccounted for.Video below: Somber scene left behind at Key Bridge Tuesday night"Based on the length of time that we've gone in the search, the extensive search efforts we've put into it, the water temperature, we do not believe that we are going to find any of these individuals alive, and so this evening around 7:30, we are going to suspend active search and rescue efforts," said U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath.Gilreath said those recovery efforts will resume Wednesday morning. The crash happened in the middle of the night, long before the busy morning commute on the bridge that was used by 12 million vehicles last year. The six people still unaccounted for were part of a construction crew filling potholes on the bridge, said Paul Wiedefeld, the state’s transportation secretary.To the families of those missing, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said Tuesday afternoon at a news conference: "We are here with you every step of the way. We are praying with you.""This is an excruciating day for several families who woke up today to news that no one wants to receive. They are hoping and praying, and we are hoping and praying with them. We are all putting our arms around the city of Baltimore," U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said at a news conference Tuesday afternoon.Port of Baltimore operationsThe Maryland Port Administration suspended vessel traffic into and out of the Port of Baltimore until further notice. The port is not shut down and they are still processing trucks inside of the terminals.Starting Wednesday, the New Vail Street gate will close until further notice. All truck traffic must enter through the Seagirt main gate at 2600 Broening Highway.The Seagirt main gate will not be extended to 5:30 p.m. on Thursday as previously scheduled. It will close at the normal time of 4:30 p.m.The Seagirt Marine Terminal will be closed on Good Friday.Authorities: No credible information to suggest terrorismBaltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said there is no intelligence or any indication that the incident was intentional.The FBI released the following statement, saying: "There is no specific and credible information to suggest any ties to terrorism at this time. The investigation is ongoing. FBI Baltimore will continue to support our partners at the local, state and federal levels."Video below captures collapse of Key BridgeThe ship underwent 27 inspections since the Dali came into service in 2016. There were no issues until June when Chilean authorities found deficiencies in propulsion and the auxiliary machinery.DHS said the Dali lost propulsion as it left Baltimore Harbor, which makes the June inspection particularly interesting. SkyTeam 11 video below shows bridge collapse & point of impact State of emergencyThe governor's office released a statement, saying: "My office is in close communication with U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski and the Baltimore Fire Department as emergency personnel are on the scene following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.Video below: "Still actively looking for survivors" - Officials update on Key Bridge"I have declared a state of emergency here in Maryland and we are working with an interagency team to quickly deploy federal resources from the Biden administration."We are thankful for the brave men and women who are carrying out efforts to rescue those involved and pray for everyone's safety."We will remain in close contact with federal, state, and local entities that are carrying out rescue efforts as we continue to assess and respond to this tragedy."Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency in Baltimore City in response to the collapse starting at 9 a.m. and will remain in place for 30 days, which enables the mobilization of emergency services and resources.Video below: Lester Holt — 'Sometimes you see life change on a dime'"This is an unthinkable tragedy," Scott said at a news conference early Tuesday morning. "This is a tragedy you can never imagine. Never did you think you would see the Key Bridge tumble down like that. It looked like something out of a movie ... Our focus should be the preservation of life.""We all awoke this morning to an unspeakable tragedy," Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski said at a news conference early Tuesday morning. "We have a long road ahead not just in the search and rescue but in the fallout after this." Alternate routes for harbor crossingsI-695 is closed between Maryland Route 157 (Peninsula Expressway) in Dundalk and Maryland Route 10 (Arundel Expressway) in Glen Burnie.Interstate 95\Fort McHenry Tunnel (Maximum height: 14 feet, 6 inches; maximum width: 11 feet)Interstate 895\Baltimore Harbor Tunnel (Maximum height: 13 feet, 6 inches; maximum width: 8 feet)Vehicles transporting hazardous materials (including propane of more than 10 pounds) are prohibited in tunnels and should use the western section of I-695 around tunnels.See official truck routes through Baltimore City here.President: Federal government will pay to rebuild bridgePresident Joe Biden spoke on the bridge collapse Tuesday afternoon, saying the federal government will send all the resources needed by the city and state.Video: President speaks about bridge collapse"We're with you, we're going to stay with you for as long as it takes. Like the governor said, you're Maryland tough, you're Baltimore strong and we're going to get through this together, and I promise we're not leaving," Biden said.The president called on Congress to put into motion the federal government paying for the construction of a replacement bridge."It's my intention that the federal government will pay for the entire cost to reconstruct the bridge," Biden said.Buttigieg said the president's plan is to rebuild the bridge and reopen the port. He said the administration is prepared to approve emergency funding upon request from the state.Video below: NTSB provides update on Key Bridge collapseThe Federal Highway Administration released a statement, saying: "The I-695 corridor is a vital connection for people and goods traveling along the East Coast, and we stand ready to offer technical assistance — including emergency relief funding — to help manage traffic and rebuild the bridge as quickly and safely as possible. "In response to the collapse, the U.S. Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration have been actively coordinating with federal, state, and local officials in the region, including the Maryland Department of Transportation, the Maryland Transportation Authority, the city of Baltimore, U.S. Coast Guard, NTSB and others."Secretary (Pete) Buttigieg, Federal Highway Administrator (Shailen) Bhatt, and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are on site today to offer federal support and assistance." What's next?The collapse is sure to create a logistical nightmare for months, if not years, along the East Coast, shutting down ship traffic at the Port of Baltimore, a major shipping hub. The accident will also snarl cargo and commuter traffic.“Losing this bridge will devastate the entire area, as well as the entire East Coast,” Maryland state Sen. Johnny Ray Salling said.Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, speaking at a news conference near the site Tuesday, said it was too soon to estimate how long it will take to clear the channel, which is about 50 feet deep.“This is no ordinary bridge. This is one of the cathedrals of American infrastructure,” he said at a news conference in Baltimore on Tuesday afternoon. “It has been part of the skyline for this region for longer than many of us have been alive.”Highway signs as far south as Virginia are warning drivers of delays associated with the closure of the bridge.“Aside from the obvious tragedy, this incident will have significant and long-lasting impacts on the region,” American Trucking Associations spokesperson Jessica Gail said, calling Key Bridge and Baltimore’s port “critical components’’ of the nation’s infrastructure.Gail noted that 1.3 million trucks cross the bridge every year — 3,600 a day. Trucks that carry hazardous materials will now have to make 30 miles of detours around Baltimore because they are prohibited from using the city’s tunnels, she said, adding to delays and increasing fuel costs.Where is this bridge?The Key Bridge opened in 1977, completing the Baltimore Beltway's circumference around the city. The bridge is southeast of the city proper and spanned from Sparrows Point to the southernmost tip of Baltimore.According to an Maryland Transportation Authority report issued in November, the Key Bridge carried more than 12.4 million commercial and passenger vehicles in 2023.Federal Highway Administration records show the bridge was last inspected in May 2021, when inspectors rated it in fair condition overall at a rating of six (satisfactory) out of nine on three parameters. These inspections are supposed to occur every 24 months.The Key Bridge was indeed last inspected in May 2023 and "found to be in satisfactory condition with an overall rating of fair," per a press aide for U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. That inspection found the bridge was in fair condition as well. Check traffic mapApp users tap here to check traffic map