Horrifying footage showing a container ship colliding with the Francis Scott Key Bridge has been circulating online.
Early on Tuesday (March 26), a bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, collapsed into the Patapsco River after being hit by a container ship.
The ship in question is Singapore-flagged ship the Dali. It was heading to Colombo, Sri Lanka, at the time of the accident.
Surveillance footage shows the moment a large section of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed, sending several vehicles into the water.
Check out the dramatic footage:
A rescue team deployed to the scene is searching for at least seven people in the river after the large vessel crashed into the bridge, causing it to collapse and send people as well as vehicles into the water, Baltimore City Fire Department Chief James Wallace confirmed at a news conference Tuesday morning, per CNN.
Two people have already been rescued from the Patapsco River, Wallace said. One of them was reportedly uninjured and the other was rushed to a local trauma center in “very serious condition,” he said.
The incident was soon declared a “mass casualty” event.
"We are in the midst of managing a mass casualty multi agency incident here. Unfortunately, we understand that there are up to 20 individuals who may be in the Patapsco river as well as multiple vehicles," Kevin Cartwright of the Baltimore Fire Department told CNN.
Cartwright also stated that the department is working with the US Coast Guard, adding that a team of divers are in the river to carry out the search and rescue operations.
"This happened at 01:30AM with limited visibility so we are working aggressively, considering the environmental temperatures as well as the water temperatures to try and rescue and perhaps recover individuals," Cartwright said.
"It feels like at least about 30 degrees (-1°C) where I am. It could be slightly lower than that. And I'm sure that the water temperature is even colder... And that can pose a concern and risk for our divers."
Cartwright confirmed the teams were working "methodically and safely" to make sure "everyone operating here on the scene is safe and that we're able to make progress without causing adverse harm to anyone else."
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott referred to the ordeal as an "unspeakable tragedy" in an interview with CNN.
“There were individuals working on the bridge at the time. There are cars in the water – our fire department has confirmed that as they lead this search-and-rescue mission through sonar. That is where our focus is – it’s about those souls, those people we’re trying to find and get out of this water,” Scott said.
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