Baltimore Bridge Disaster: Authorities Searching For Seven Missing People After Dramatic Francis Scott Key Bridge Collapse — Updating

UPDATING: Baltimore authorities are searching for at least seven people after a dramatic cargo ship crash caused the Francis Scott Key Bridge to collapse.

During a press briefing on Tuesday morning, Baltimore Fire Chief James Wallace said an active search and rescue mission was underway following the incident at 1.30AM local time.

Two people have already been removed from the water, one of whom was taken to a local trauma center in a serious condition. The other individual was not injured.

Submerged vehicles have been detected in the water using sonar technology. It is not clear how many vehicles were involved in the incident.

Video from the scene showed a large outbound vessel colliding with one of the bridge’s support columns, causing the structure to fall dramatically into the Patapsco River.

Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott said it was an “unthinkable tragedy.” He added: “We have to be thinking about the families and people impacted, folks who we have to try to find.

“This is what our focus should be on right now, we’re going to continue to work in partnership with every part of government to do everything we can to get us through the other side of this tragedy.”

The White House said it was “closely monitoring” the situation. “Our hearts go out to the families of those who remain missing as a result of this horrific incident,” it added.

Earlier in the morning, Kevin Cartwright, director of communications for the Baltimore Fire Department, said the collapse was a “dire emergency” and a “developing mass casualty event.”

The Dali cargo ship involved in the accident operates under a Singapore flag and is owned by Synergy Marine Group. All crew were safe, according to the company.

Francis Scott Key Bridge is a major transport route in Baltimore, opening in 1977. The 1.6-mile bridge has been a production location for films including Deep Impact.

A live stream of the scene shows the wreckage of the bridge surrounding the halted ship.