The Maryland State Traffic Authority announced this on Tuesday. According to media reports, there is said to be a search for up to 20 people who are said to have fallen into the ice-cold water. The full extent of the damage to the three-kilometer-long Key Bridge, which crosses the Patapsco River, was initially not known.
Rescue work is underway and a diving team is on site. It was initially unclear how many vehicles were on the bridge at the time of the collapse.
There were initially no official reports of deaths or injuries. The Baltimore Fire Department did not respond to a request for comment. The police said they were informed about the incident on Tuesday night at 1:35 a.m. local time (06:35 CET). The Francis Scott Key Bridge leads over the harbor of the metropolis in the northeast of the USA.
According to initial information, the ship that caused the bridge to partially collapse was a Singapore-flagged container ship. Video recordings in online services show the collapse of the illuminated bridge.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said on X (formerly Twitter) that he was aware of the Key Bridge incident and was on his way there. “Emergency crews are on site and rescue work is underway.”
This article was updated at 10:41 am.
