(LibertySons.org) – Approximately 30,000 commuters travel over the Francis Scott Key Bridge every day in Baltimore, Maryland. It’s situated near the city’s port and spans the Patapsco River. Sadly, the bridge is in the river after a terrible accident.
In the early morning hours of Tuesday, March 26, a cargo ship named Dali slammed into the bridge after losing power. Seconds later, the span completely collapsed and fell into the water and onto the vessel. According to officials, the ship sent out a mayday call to alert Harbor Control before the accident to let them know that they lost propulsion and power. That gave authorities enough time to stop the traffic at both ends of the bridge.
Baltimore Fire Chief James Wallace held a press conference later that morning and revealed there was a road construction crew on the bridge at the time of the accident. Two of them were rescued from the water, one body was recovered, and five workers were missing. The company that hired the workers were immigrants from Central America and Mexico. They were all in their 30s and 40s.
Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) confirmed the reports, saying the mayday call gave “folks enough time to stop some of the traffic crossing the bridge.” He said the only vehicles that fell into the water were the ones being used by the road crew.
On Tuesday evening, the Coast Guard announced the rescue mission had transitioned into a recovery mission. The missing workers were presumed dead.
President Joe Biden issued a statement from the White House in the afternoon and pledged the federal government would “pay for the entire cost of reconstructing the bridge.” He made it clear to Congress that he expected them to support his plan. The POTUS promised Baltimore residents that the government would “stick with them every step of the way.”
~Here’s to Our Liberty!
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