The head of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) told reporters Tuesday that before anyone even considers removing the debris from the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, it is important to take care of the families and this tragic and devastating event. He said the focus would be on those affected by the
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy updated reporters at a news conference but declined to answer questions about the fatal crash, saying at the beginning of the briefing that she would defer questions to local authorities.
Instead, the NTSB said it would step back to allow the Coast Guard and other search and rescue operations after the main bridge collapsed after being hit by a container ship around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Mr. Homendy said his team of experts will investigate everything leading up to the accident, including navigation, vessel operations, safety history, vessel safety records, shipowner operations, company policies, safety management, human performance, engineering, survival factors, etc. He said he would investigate.
He also said highway safety teams and structural engineers would assist in the investigation.
Family support teams will be on scene to help families, friends and loved ones affected by the collapse.
“This was a team effort,” Homendy said, adding there was a lot of organization at the command post.
Information about the number of cars and workers on the bridge at the time of the collapse needs to be confirmed, Homendy said.
She said she doesn’t believe anyone is thinking about the next step, which is to clean the bridge and reopen the channel. Instead, Homendy said this is about family.
“Nobody judges by numbers,” she said. “They’re just looking and looking.”
Homendy told reporters he was not aware that the bridge had been cited for safety deficiencies in the past, but that the investigation would look into that. However, he said the investigation into the bridge’s history could take at least two years and would not include any on-site verification.
Still, Homendy said she didn’t have much information to provide at the time of the press conference because she and her team had just arrived.
“Really, the focus is on the family,” she said.
