Six people missing after a Baltimore bridge collapsed on Tuesday are presumed dead, authorities said.
Maryland officials held a press conference Tuesday night following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge earlier in the day, when a container ship reportedly lost power and crashed into a structure. Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath, commander of the 5th Coast Guard District, said authorities are suspending active search and rescue efforts due to various reasons that the missing person is no longer alive. (Related: Baltimore Bridge collapses after being hit by container ship)
“Tonight, we would like to announce that given the amount of time we have spent on this search, the extensive search effort we have undertaken to date, and the water temperatures, we do not believe a search will take place at this time. ‘I think it’s about finding these people who are still alive,’ Gilreath said. “So, tonight at approximately 7:30 p.m., we will be discontinuing active search and rescue operations. The Coast Guard is not going away, our partners are not going away, but we are different. It’s just going through stages.”
Officials said both dive teams and sonar technology were used in search and rescue operations, which were suspended as active search operations were suspended. State Police Col. Roland L. Butler said divers will return Wednesday morning to attempt to recover the missing body due to concerns about low temperatures, poor visibility, changing currents and unknown objects in the water. I admitted that it would be.
Butler said authorities are not currently ruling out the possibility that six more people are missing, but there is no evidence to suggest that so far. Officials are so far unsure where the bodies were found, but Butler said they will do their “best efforts to help these families find closure.”
The identity of the missing person has not yet been released as the investigation is ongoing.
