The NTSB investigator in charge of the bridge collapse investigation provides a timeline of crash
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March 27, 2024 - Baltimore Key Bridge collapse

By Kathleen Magramo, Antoinette Radford, Alisha Ebrahimji, Maureen Chowdhury, Elise Hammond, Tori B. Powell and Aditi Sangal, CNN

Updated 1:47 p.m. ET, March 28, 2024
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11:02 p.m. ET, March 27, 2024

The NTSB investigator in charge of the bridge collapse investigation provides a timeline of crash

From CNN's Aditi Sangal

Cargo ship Dali is seen after running into and collapsing the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, in Baltimore, Maryland.
Cargo ship Dali is seen after running into and collapsing the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, in Baltimore, Maryland. Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

Marcel Muise, the National Transportation Safety Board investigator in charge, provided the following timeline of events as provided by the recovered voyage data recorder (VDR).

  • Approximately 12:39 a.m. ET: The ship departed from Seagirt Marine Terminal.
  • By 1:07: The ship had entered the Fort McHenry Channel.
  • 01:24:59: Numerous audible alarms were recorded on the ship's bridge audio. About the same time, VDR sensor data ceased recording. The VDR audio continued to record using the redundant power source, Muise said.
  • 01:26:02: VDR resumed recording sensor data and during this time, steering commands and rudder orders were recorded on the audio.
  • 01:26:39: The ship's pilot made a general very high frequency (VHF) radio call for tugs in the vicinity to assist. About to this time, Muise said, the pilot association dispatcher phoned the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) duty officer regarding the blackout.
  • Around 01:27:04: The pilot ordered the Dali to drop the port anchor and ordered additional steering commands.
  • Around 01:27:25: The pilot issued a radio call over the VHF radio, reporting that the Dali had lost all power and was approaching the bridge. Around this time, the MDTA data shows the following also occurred: Their duty officer radioed two of their units that were already on scene due to construction on the bridge — one on each side of the bridge — and ordered them to close traffic on the bridge. All lanes were then shut down by MDTA.
  • Around 01:29: The ship's speed over ground was recorded at just under 8 miles per hour. From this moment on approximately 1:29:33, the VDR audio recorded sounds consistent with the collision of the bridge. Additionally, around this time, MDTA dash cameras show the bridge lights extinguishing.
  • 01:29:39: The pilot reported the bridge down over the VFH radio to the Coast Guard.
8:40 p.m. ET, March 27, 2024

Investigation could hopefully take 12 to 24 months, NTSB chair says

From CNN's Tori B. Powell

The investigation into the cargo ship crash into Key Bridge could take up to two years, according to National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy.

"We have an amazing team of individuals who are focused on very specific areas of expertise and so I have no doubt that we will be able to pull this together in hopefully 12 to 24 months," she said Wednesday at a news conference.

She called the investigation "a massive undertaking" and said there are "many different components to the investigation."

"It's multimodal," Homendy said, noting that "this is not new for the NTSB."

"We've conducted other investigations of bridge strikes, bridge collapses," she said.

8:30 p.m. ET, March 27, 2024

NTSB received 6 hours of voyage data from ship that crashed into bridge, investigator says

From CNN's Tori B. Powell

Approximately six hours of voyage data from the Dali cargo ship that hit the Key Bridge in Baltimore has been provided to the National Transportation Safety Board, according to Marcel Muise, NTSB investigator in charge.

The footage was recovered by the US Coast Guard on the morning of the accident and contains footage from midnight to 6 a.m. ET, Muise said at a Wednesday news conference.

"The NTSB is continuing to obtain more data," Muise said.

8:22 p.m. ET, March 27, 2024

Hazmat investigator identified 56 containers of hazardous materials, NTSB chief says

From CNN's Aditi Sangal

A senior hazmat investigator from the National Transportation Safety Board looked at the cargo and cargo manifest today, identifying 56 containers of hazardous material, agency Chair Jennifer Homendy said Wednesday.

"He was able to identify 56 containers of hazardous materials. That's 764 tons of hazardous materials — mostly corrosives, flammables, and some miscellaneous hazardous materials, class nine hazardous materials, which would include lithium ion batteries," she said at a news briefing.

Some of the hazmat containers "were breached," she said, adding that sheen was seen on the waterway.

8:41 p.m. ET, March 27, 2024

There were 23 individuals on the cargo ship at the time of the accident, NTSB chair says

From CNN's Tori B. Powell

In an aerial view, cargo ship Dali is seen after running into and collapsing the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, in Baltimore, Maryland.
In an aerial view, cargo ship Dali is seen after running into and collapsing the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, in Baltimore, Maryland. Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

There were 21 crew members and two pilots onboard the Dali cargo ship when it crashed into Baltimore's Key Bridge, according to the National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy.

The NTSB is leading the investigation, Homendy has said. The board will try to determine what occurred onboard Dali and also look at the structure of the bridge itself.

Read more about what investigators are working on here.

8:38 p.m. ET, March 27, 2024

NTSB won't provide conclusions and analysis while on scene, agency chief says

From CNN's Aditi Sangal

The National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy speaks during a press conference on Wednesday, March 27.
The National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy speaks during a press conference on Wednesday, March 27. Pool

The National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy emphasized the agency will not analyze information collected or provide conclusions while on the scene of the Key Bridge collapse.

"It's really important for folks to understand that we will not analyze any of the information we are collecting. We will not provide any sort of findings, conclusions or any safety recommendations while on scene," she said.
"Our entire focus on scene is to collect the perishable evidence — that's documenting the scene, it's taking photographs, it's taking any sort of electronics or components, whatever goes away once the scene is cleaned up," she said.
8:08 p.m. ET, March 27, 2024

NOW: NTSB is sharing updates on the Key Bridge collapse

The National Transportation Safety Board is holding a news conference to share updates about the Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore.

NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy is expected to speak.

7:59 p.m. ET, March 27, 2024

Officials pause recovery efforts for 4 workers presumed dead after bridge collapse

From CNN's Aditi Sangal and Elise Hammond

Authorities are pausing search and recovery efforts for the four additional people who are presumed dead after the bridge collapse, Col. Roland L. Butler Jr., the superintendent of Maryland State Police said Wednesday evening.

“At this point, based upon the conditions, we are now moving from a recovery mode to a salvage operation," he said.

"Because of the superstructure surrounding what we believe were the vehicles and the amount of concrete and debris, divers are no longer able to safely navigate and operate around that," he said. "We have exhausted all search efforts."

The superintendent added that based on sonar scans, officials believe that the vehicles are "encased in the superstructure and concrete" of the bridge.

Butler Jr. added that there is "no definitive timeline" for how long the salvage phase will take, once it is complete, the divers will go back to the site.

“The sonar simply said they cannot get to that area because it was fully encased in the superstructure," he said. “Once that salvage effort takes place and that superstructure is removed, those same divers are going to go back out there and bring those people closure," he added.

The headline and post have been updated with additional comments from Butler Jr.

7:41 p.m. ET, March 27, 2024

Brother of a missing person from bridge collapse describes him as "a man who dreamed big"

From CNN's Michael Rios 

The brother of a person presumed dead after the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed earlier this week described him as a "man who dreamed big."

"I could describe him as a dynamic person, as a visionary person, a man who dreamed big," said Martin Suazo Sandoval, brother of Maynor Suazo Sandoval.

He told CNNE in Honduras on Wednesday that his brother was an industrial mechanical technician and went to the United States to fulfill his dreams. However, after the pandemic, Maynor Suazo Sandoval had to look for an additional job to have more income and found work at a bridge supervision and maintenance company.

Martin Suazo Sandoval said his brother believed in helping people, and sponsored minor sports leagues because he believed that by "helping the children here in the town, they would have a better childhood".

Martin Suazo Sandoval said what they want most is for their brother's body to be found "so we can begin to take steps to repatriate him."