March 26, 2024 - Baltimore Key Bridge collapses after ship collision

Baltimore City Council Member Phylicia Porter said she has "a lot of questions" following the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse early Tuesday, and she's eager for authorities to complete their investigation.

Porter also told Sanchez on Tuesday afternoon that a body had been recovered from the river, but later said she misspoke.

The US Coast Guard continues to search for six individuals after the collapse.

Correction: A previous version of this story said a body was recovered from the river, citing Porter. Porter later said she misspoke.

The Baltimore Orioles canceled the team's planned workout and fans' rally scheduled for Tuesday following the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore.

Earlier in the day, the Orioles released a statement extending their "thoughts and prayers" to those affected by the incident.

“We are devastated by the news of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse, and send our thoughts and prayers to those impacted by this tragedy," the statement read. “We thank the brave first responders and the men and women actively working on rescue efforts. Baltimore, we’re a tight-knit and resilient city. Together we will get through this.”

The Orioles are scheduled to open the 2024 MLB season at Baltimore's Camden Yards against the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday.

US Army Corps of Engineers Commanding General Scott A. Spellmon has been in touch with the Port of Baltimore about the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, Deputy Defense Secretary Sabrina Singh said Tuesday. 

The NTSB has been hearing lots of numbers about how many cars and people were on the bridge during the collapse, National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said Tuesday.

Search teams are working to verify those numbers, she said, but it's not for the NTSB to nail them down.

Instead, she said, local authorities like Maryland State Police and the Maryland Transportation Authority along with federal partners will work to verify if there are other victims.

It's "too early to tell" in this stage of the investigation if reports of power outage on the ship are true, National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said.

"We have been made aware of those same reports about there being a power outage. I've also seen statements, media releases from Singapore as well. It's something that we take in, but something that we have to verify through our investigation that that was what was part of the contributing cause here," she told reporters on Tuesday afternoon. "So too early to tell."

Earlier Tuesday, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said the crew of the ship notified officials that it had lost power prior to the crash. Lights on the ship flickered and a dark plume of smoke could be seen billowing from it before it veered toward a bridge pillar shortly before impact, CNN analysis of data from MarineTraffic shows.

National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said it will "take time to dig through" whether the Francis Scott Key Bridge has ever been flagged for any safety deficiencies.

Homendy at a news conference pointed to the agency's recent investigation of the Fern Hollow Bridge collapse in Pittsburgh in 2022, which "took almost two years to get information" on bridge inspections and whether or not records existed, she said.

"It's a very cumbersome process," Homendy added. "It's a very meticulous process where they have to dig through a lot of information, so it will not be something that we will be able to verify well on."

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore during an earlier news conference said that the now-collapsed Baltimore bridge was "fully up to code" and had no structural issues.

A National Transportation Safety Board official said that the structure of the collapsed Baltimore bridge will be looked into as part of the agency's investigation.

"There's some questions about the structure of the bridge," NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy said.

Homendy said that NTSB is "aware of what a structure should have" and will look into how the Francis Scott Key Bridge was built and investigate the structure itself.

"All of that will be a part of our investigation. We go very broad in our investigation," she said.

More than 12 hours after a cargo ship hit a Baltimore bridge, causing it to collapse, the head of the National Transportation Safety Board said focus is still on finding people.

Chairperson Jennifer Homendy said she could not share many details about what happened yet and the priority is search and rescue operations.

The NTSB is leading the investigation into the incident at the Francis Scott Key Bridge.

At least six people are still unaccounted for, officials said previously.

The Singapore-registered DALI container ship that struck the Baltimore bridge dropped its anchor prior to impact as part of its emergency procedure, according to the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.

National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said the agency will look into if and when the ship dropped the anchor, but there is no information as of now.