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

The pilot of the ship that crashed into the Baltimore bridge Tuesday did “everything that he could have done” to slow the ship and keep it from drifting toward the bridge, said Clay Diamond, executive director and general counsel of the American Pilots Association.

Diamond has been in close communication with the Association of Maryland Pilots over what unfolded on the Dali cargo ship in the moments leading up to the crash. 

At that point, according to Diamond, the pilot did “everything that he could have done” to both slow the ship down and keep it from drifting to the right, toward the bridge.

The pilot quickly gave a string of orders, calling for a hard rudder to port — as far left as possible — and for the anchor to be dropped.

Additionally, Diamond said, the pilot was the one who contacted the pilot dispatch office to shut down traffic to the bridge. 

“Those were all the appropriate steps but it happened so quickly and with so little lead time ... neither one of those maneuvers were enough,” Diamond said. 

Diamond pointed out that while the lights on the boat could be seen turning back on — likely due to an emergency generator activating after the initial blackout — the ship’s engines never got running again. 

Maritime pilots, who are required to be licensed, temporarily board a ship and help guide the vessel as it maneuvers through local waters. Pilot training programs are extensive and rigorous, according to Diamond, requiring years of experience navigating ships on the water, classroom simulations, and working under the supervision of licensed pilots. 

Recovery efforts will be focused to find the missing people to provide closure to their families, said Col. Roland L. Butler Jr., secretary of Maryland State Police.

Conditions have changed and made it dangerous for first responders and divers to be in the water around the collapsed Baltimore bridge, Col. Roland L. Butler Jr., secretary of Maryland State Police, said at a news briefing on Tuesday.

This comes as authorities announced they're moving from a search-and-rescue operation to a recovery phase for the missing people.

"The changing conditions out there have made it dangerous for the first responders, the divers in the water," he explained. "We will still have surface ships out overnight."

He said divers are expected to be back in the water at 6 a.m. ET on Wednesday when "we'll find ourselves in a better position to understand the dynamics of what we're dealing with, and to address the issues in a much safer manner."

The post was updated with more details on Butler's remarks.

The Coast Guard is only aware of six missing individuals following the bridge collapse in Baltimore harbor, Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath said at a Tuesday news conference.

A Maryland law enforcement official said while there is a "distinct possibility" that there could have been more vehicles on the bridge when it collapsed, they have not found any evidence to support that.

Authorities have been able to find three passenger vehicles, a cement truck and a fifth vehicle submerged in the water using infrared and side-scan sonar technology, Baltimore City Fire Chief James Wallace previously told CNN.

Radio traffic captured how authorities stopped traffic and worked to clear the bridge seconds before the impact.

Dive teams from various state and local agencies were brought in to assist in the search-and-recover operation after the collapse of the Baltimore bridge, Maryland State Police Secretary Col. Roland L. Butler Jr. said at a news conference.

Sonar was also used as part of the search and rescue operation, he added.

"From the outset, we’ve moved all those resources in,” Butler explained. “We’re doing our best in some very difficult times and difficult conditions.” 

The headline has been updated on this post.

The Coast Guard is ending its active search and rescue operation for the six unaccounted people who were on the Francis Scott Key Bridge when it collapsed.

Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath said that based on the length of time since the bridge collapsed and the water temperatures "we do not believe that we are going to find any of these individuals still alive."

The bridge collapsed at around 1:30 a.m. ET after a container ship hit the pillar. The active search-and-rescue efforts were suspended around 7:30 p.m. ET, Gilreath said.

Gilreath emphasized the Coast Guard is not leaving, but said it is “just going to transition to a different phase.”

US Sen. Chris Van Hollen described Tuesday as a "tragic day" in Baltimore during an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer Tuesday evening. 

Van Hollen praised workers who stopped traffic after receiving the ship's mayday signal.

"The effort goes on to search for those who are missing," Van Hollen said , but added "the immediate issue besides the search and rescue is opening up that channel."

"I understand there are about four ships in the port that can't get out, I understand there were about 20 ships that were waiting to come in," Van Hollen said. 

Van Hollen said there are thousands of workers employed at the Port of Baltimore, and "tens of thousands more depend on what is one of the most vibrant ports in the country, the biggest port for automobiles."

According to Van Hollen, Maryland plans to access the Emergency Relief Fund within the Federal Highway Administration, though that won't be enough to rebuild the bridge — "That will be long and expensive," Van Hollen said.  

Van Hollen said he is in communication with his Senate colleagues and plans to work with the House on relief efforts.

At least six people are presumed dead following the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse Tuesday in Baltimore, according to reporting from The Baltimore Sun.

Jeffrey Pritzker, executive vice president of Brawner Builders called the news “a terrible, terrible, unforeseen tragedy.”

Two people were pulled from the Patapsco River, the Baltimore fire chief previously said Tuesday.

Earlier, family members of workers who were on the bridge at the time of the collapse spoke with CNN at Brawner Builders construction agency, where they were picking up vehicles belonging to their relatives.

CNN has reached out to Brawner Builders for comment.