Six presumed dead after Baltimore bridge collapse 👀

 Six presumed dead after Baltimore bridge collapse

The cargo ship Dali sits in the water after running into and collapsing the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, in Baltimore, Maryland. Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) team will likely board the MV Dali for the first time on Wednesday, 

“We will look for electronics throughout the vessel — anything we feel that could help us in the investigation,” she said.

Right now, investigators are identifying their first investigative targets, including who they will interview and which entities will be party to the investigation, Homendy said.

Investigators are also preparing to look at the structure of the bridge and any debris that fell to the Patapsco River and onto the ship itself, she added.

Of the 24 NTSB investigators on the scene, Homendy said a specialized team would determine who was controlling the vessel and who was on the ship’s bridge at the time of the crash.

Six people are presumed dead after the Baltimore bridge collision. Here's what we know about them

Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed early on Tuesday after a container ship smashed into one of its columns, sending people and cars crashing into the frigid Patapsco River.

Eight construction workers were believed to be mending potholes on the bridge when it fell. Two of them were pulled from the river and survived but the remaining six are presumed dead.

Divers will return to the water on Wednesday to search for the missing people.

Here's what we know about the victims:

Father-of-three Miguel Luna, who is from El Salvador but has called Maryland home for 19 years, was among those missing, according to CASA, a nonprofit that provides services to working-class and immigrant families. 

A Honduran father of two, Maynor Yassir Suazo Sandoval, has also been missing since the bridge collapse, the man's brother told CNN. He said his brother has lived in the US for 18 years and has an 18-year-old son and a 5-year-old daughter.

Two Guatemalans are among those unaccounted for, the country's foreign ministry said. Those missing include a 26-year-old from San Luis, Peten, and a 35-year-old from Camotan, Chiquimula. The ministry did not name the men.

The victims also include Mexican nationals but it is unclear how many, a Mexican Embassy official told reporters near the scene of the bridge.

Dali ship briefly held in Chile last year over propulsion issue, Chilean Navy says

The Singapore-flagged cargo ship Dali, which crashed into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge, was briefly held in Chile last June over a propulsion issue, the Chilean Navy told CNN.

An inspector found that the pressure gauges for the vessel’s heating system were “unreadable," and it was held at the Port of San Antonio on June 27, 2023, a navy spokesperson said Tuesday night.

“The port state inspector granted a deadline for solving the deficiency before the ship could set sail, which was completed and verified on site by the inspector on the same day,” the spokesperson said.

It was held at Chile's largest port, which categorized the deficiency of the vessel as related to “propulsion and auxiliary machinery.”

It was not the first time the Dali had been held in a foreign port.

The container ship had been inspected 27 times since its building in 2015, and had two “deficiencies" since then, according to records from the Electronic Quality Shipping Information System (Equasis).

Recovery efforts to continue for 6 people presumed dead after Baltimore bridge collapse. Here's what to know

The US Coast Guard has suspended rescue efforts for the six people who were on Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge when it collapsed after a cargo ship collision. Recovery efforts are now underway for the missing people, who are presumed dead. 

Here are the latest developments:

Overnight search deemed unsafe: Recovery operations were halted overnight due to dangerous conditions, including unstable sections of the bridge and shipping containers hanging from the vessel. Divers will return to the water Wednesday to search for the missing.

Coast Guard assessing hazmat threat: The US Coast Guard is examining damaged shipping containers, some containing potentially hazardous materials, from the crashed vessel, according to a US government document obtained by English news and a US official familiar with the matter. The team is also examining the ship’s manifest to determine if any materials on board may pose a health risk.

People from multiple countries are missing: Miguel Luna, a father of three from El Salvador, has been identified as one of the missing workers. Father-of-two Maynor Yassir Suazo Sandoval from Honduras has also been identified as one of the missing. Two Guatemalans are among those unaccounted for, and some of those missing are Mexican nationals, though we don't know how many.

Investigators to collect evidence: The National Transportation Safety Board is leading an investigation into the incident and will likely board the vessel Wednesday to begin evidence collection.

Ship blacked out before crash: Minutes before impact, there was a “total blackout” of engine and electrical power on the ship, according to Clay Diamond, executive director of the American Pilots Association.

Reconstruction's hefty price tag: Rebuilding the bridge will “not be quick” and will be costly, according to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. President Joe Biden called on Congress to support recovery efforts and said he wants the federal government to cover the full repair costs.