Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed early on Tuesday morning.
BI viewed a livestream that appeared to show a massive ship striking a support beam.
Vessel tracking maps as of 2:50 a.m. showed Coast Guard vessels moving toward the Dali, a Singapore-flagged cargo ship.
Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed on Tuesday morning after it was struck by what appeared to be a large cargo ship.
A video of the incident was posted early on Tuesday morning to X, formerly Twitter. In the video, a large vessel was seen colliding with one of the bridge’s support beams. Smoke was seen billowing from the ship before the bridge began crumbling.
“MAJOR BALTIMORE TRAFFIC ALERT: AVOID I-695 southeast corridor. I-695 Key Bridge collapse due to ship strike,” the Maryland Transportation Authority said in an X post on Tuesday morning.
A representative for the Baltimore Police Department told ABC News that “at 1:35 a.m., Baltimore City police were notified of a partial bridge collapse, with workers possibly in the water, at the Francis Scott Key Bridge.”
Kevin Cartwright, communications director for the Baltimore Fire Department, told the Associated Press that they believe that at least seven people are in the water.
“Our focus right now is trying to rescue and recover these people,” Cartwright told the AP, adding that the situation was a “developing mass casualty event.”
BI also viewed a YouTube livestream of the bridge, which showed a large vessel hitting the bridge at around 1:28 a.m. local time.
The livestream view of the area at around 3:00 a.m. local time showed the bridge’s structure partially submerged in the harbor and in several pieces.
BI also viewed a vessel tracking map of the area on the ship monitoring site VesselFinder.com. At 2:50 a.m. local time, the Dali, a Singapore-flagged container ship, was seen remaining stationary under the bridge.
The Dali is owned by Grace Ocean, a Singapore-based firm. The firm confirmed in a statement on Tuesday morning that their vessel had struck one of the bridge’s pillars, per TradeWinds.
“All crew members, including the two pilots, have been accounted for and there are no reports of any injuries. There has also been no pollution,” read the firm’s statement.
According to Grace Ocean, the vessel was bound for Colombo, Sri Lanka when the accident took place.
Several vessels marked as Coast Guard search and rescue vessels were seen moving toward the ship on the VesselFinder.com map, with one stationed next to the ship as of 3:03 a.m. local time.
The Dali, a Singapore-flagged cargo ship, was seen stationary on VesselFinder.com’s vessel-tracking map.Screengrab/VesselFinder.com
Emergency services teams, including divers and at least two helicopters, responded to the scene, per Baltimore County’s police scanner in the hour and a half after the bridge’s collapse.
It is unclear if any vehicles were traveling along the bridge during the collapse. Representatives for the Maryland Transportation Authority did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski, Jr. said in an X post that the authorities “are closely monitoring the ongoing situation at the Key Bridge.”
“Our prayers remain with all those impacted,” Olszewski wrote.
The Francis Scott Key Bridge opened in March 1977 as the final link in the Baltimore Beltway, according to the MDTA. It cost $60.3 million to build and is 10.9 miles long, per the MDTA.
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