Baltimore bridge collapse updates: Officials shift to salvage operation; 4 still missing

BALTIMORE – Authorities on Thursday forged ahead with a salvage operation to remove the mangled bridge and wreckage from the Patapsco River before recovering the bodies of four construction workers and clearing the waterway so the Port of Baltimore, a critical East Coast shipping artery, can resume operations.

A crew repairing potholes on the bridge Tuesday morning were on a break when a massive shipping vessel traveling about 9 mph lost power and smashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing it to collapse in seconds. Eight workers were plunged into the frigid water. Two survived, and officials said the others were presumed dead by Tuesday evening.

On Wednesday, rescuers found the bodies of two men trapped in a red pickup around the bridge's middle span, Maryland State Police Superintendent Col. Roland L. Butler Jr. said at a news conference. The workers were from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, Butler said.

The piles of wreckage in the water, as well as the 984-foot-long cargo ship, forced authorities to shut down the Port of Baltimore, which handles more cars and farm equipment than any other port in the nation. Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, speaking about the facility where $80 billion in foreign cargo transited last year, called it "a global crisis."

Developing:

∎ The chairperson of commercial insurance market Lloyd's of London told Reuters that the Baltimore bridge collapse is likely to lead a multi-billion dollar insurance loss.

∎ Storms moving over the mid-Atlantic region and much of the Northeast is expected to dump rain over Baltimore throughout Thursday afternoon and evening, according to the National Weather Servic

Orioles to honor victims of Baltimore bridge collapse on opening day

The Baltimore Orioles during opening day will honor the victims of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse as well as their families and first responders.

The club will hold a moment of silence and a replica of the flag that flew over Fort McHenry when Francis Scott Key wrote the Star-Spangled Banner will be lowered during the national anthem performance, according to a news release from the Major League Baseball.

The Orioles are going up against the Los Angeles Angels at Camden Yards stadium in downtown Baltimore. The game is slated to begin shortly after 3 p.m. Pregame festivities will begin around 2:30 p.­m.

The ship underwent routine engine maintenance at Baltimore port

The container ship, the Dali, underwent "routine engine maintenance" at the port before it set out on a weekslong journey to Sri Lanka, lost power and crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge, U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath said at a news conference Wednesday.

Gilreath said the Coast Guard was not informed of any issues with the vessel or its engine. The National Transportation Safety Board has not stated a cause for the crash, citing ongoing investigations.
The 9-year-old container ship was involved in at least one prior accident before it crashed into the Baltimore bridge. In 2016, the Dali struck a loading pier made of stone while leaving port in Antwerp, causing damage to the ship’s stern, according to VesselFinder.com, a site that tracks ships across the world. An investigation found the ship’s master and pilot had made a mistake and were to blame. The ship required repair and a full inspection before being returned to service.

During an inspection in June, officials discovered a deficiency with the Dali's "propulsion and auxiliary machinery (gauges, thermometers, etc)," according to the Tokyo MOU, an intergovernmental maritime authority in the Asia-Pacific region.

On Tuesday, the Dali was carrying the cargo of Maersk, the major shipping company that chartered it. The ship is operated by charter vessel company Synergy Group and is owned by Singapore-based Grace Ocean Pte.