Two bodies have been recovered from a truck which plunged into the Patapsco River in the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
Rescue efforts have been ongoing in Baltimore since the bridge collapsed at approximately 1:30am local time on Tuesday (26 March), when it was struck by a container ship.
While authorities were able to quickly prevent cars from entering the bridge after the collision, there are believed to have been eight construction workers mending potholes on the structure when it fell.
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Two people were pulled from the river alive after the incident, but officials have since announced that two bodies have been found in a red pickup truck located about 25ft (7.6m) of water.
The two men have been identified as a 35-year-old and a 26-year-old; Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, of Mexico, and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, of Guatemala.
Sadly, the remaining missing workers are presumed dead, officials have said.
Among the people who are still missing is dad-of-three Miguel Luna, and dad Maynor Suazo.
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The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Guatemala has also stated that a 35-year-old from Camotán, Chiquimula is also unaccounted for, while Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador has announced that a Mexican national is among those missing.
The 22 people onboard the cargo ship Dali came away from the disaster unharmed.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore has praised the rescue divers who worked in 'pitch dark conditions, in frigid temperatures, in high tides and high winds, with mangled metal all around them' to try and recover those who had fallen into the water.
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Speaking to CNN, Moore described the collapse as a 'catastrophic and horrific occurrence' both for the state and the families of those who went missing.
“They reminded us who these individuals were – that they weren’t just special workers who were doing important work for the city and for the state, but they were people who were husbands and sons and fathers and brothers-in-law,” Moore said.
“So, this is a really devastated community of families.”
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Supervisory Special Agent Brian Hudson, the FBI agent leading the search, has described the situation in the water under the bridge as 'very dangerous'.
“With the rubble still settling, it’s not a great spot for divers,” he told CBS News.
“It’s incredibly black water, as the sediment gets kicked up. And there’s also a significant current moving underwater as the tides change.”
Hudson added that the efforts to recover those who are missing could take as long as a week as responders navigate the environment.
Topics: Baltimore bridge, US News
Emily Brown