(RepublicanReport.org) – A container ship moving cargo from Baltimore, Maryland, to Colombo, Sri Lanka, lost control and collided with a pillar supporting a high-traffic bridge early morning on March 26. The impact caused the structure to collapse and workers on the bridge to fall into the river below. Six people are presumed missing.
The ship appeared to be in control of its movements when it entered and exited the Baltimore port, but then it suddenly lost power, leaving the pilot with no means of steering as the cargo vehicle careened off its intended path. The lights reportedly flickered as the massive vessel continued off course. It should have traveled safely beneath the bridge and toward the open ocean. Instead, it plunged into a pillar, sending the structure crumbling into the water below.
Officials had enough time to stop traffic on both sides of the bridge, thanks to a mayday call from the ship warning it had lost control of its propulsion system. No commuter traffic was present when the bridge crumbled, which saved countless lives, but a construction crew doing road repairs failed to evacuate from the worksite there, and several of their vehicles went down with the workers in the collapse.
Rescuers recovered two survivors shortly after the accident, but officials fear they may be recovering several bodies moving forward. The National Transportation Safety Board is currently investigating the incident. One of the people rescued was uninjured, while the other was treated and discharged from a local hospital. No one aboard the vessel, The Dali, was hurt in the accident.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D), who declared a state of emergency and requested federal aid, feels confident that the crash was just an accident and not the result of a terrorist attack. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden has vowed that the federal government would foot the entire bill to rebuild the bridge as quickly as possible.
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