Rescue ongoing as cars and people fall into water after ship strike causes Baltimore bridge to collapse
A major bridge has collapsed in the US city of Baltimore after it was hit by a cargo ship.
Footage shows a large section of the 1.6-mile-long Francis Scott Key Bridge falling into the Patapsco River, following the collision at around 1.30am local time (5.30am UK time).
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Vehicles can be seen in the video falling from the bridge.
Six people remain unaccounted for after two people were rescued from the water.
One of those rescued was in a “very serious condition” and is receiving treatment in hospital while the other was not injured.
According to officials, the ship had issued a mayday call to authorities that it had lost power before the collision. They later said it had lost propulsion and had dropped its anchors before the crash.
Baltimore bridge latest: Follow live updates
Pic: Reuters
CCTV and marine tracking data shows the ship, known as the Dali, lose power, adjust its course and start smoking around 60 seconds before it hits the bridge.
All Baltimore port traffic has been suspended until further notice, the Maryland Transport Authority, said.
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‘We’ve not seen evidence of a terror attack’
In an update on Tuesday afternoon, Wes Moore, governor of Baltimore, and Paul Wiedefeld, secretary of the Maryland Transport Authority, said those still missing are believed to be construction workers who were on the bridge fixing potholes.
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Daylight aerials show extent of bridge collapse
All 22 crew members on board the ship, including the two pilots, have been accounted for and there were no reports of injuries.
Mr Moore said intel from a preliminary investigation points to an accident. He said there is no evidence of a terrorism-related attack.
“To the victims of this tragedy and their loved ones all of our hearts are broken we feel your loss we are thinking of you,” Mr Moore said.
“We pray for the construction workers who were on the bridge and all who have been touched by this tragedy
We will get through this.”
Pic: Baltimore City Fire Department Rescue Team
Mayor of Baltimore, Brandon Scott, declared a local state of emergency which will be in place for the next 30 days as the search for the missing continues.
He said earlier that the collapse “looked like something out of an action movie”.
The National Transportation Safety Board is also conducting an investigation into the incident.
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‘It looked like something from an action movie’
More on the bridge collapse:
What do we know about bridge and the ship that hit it?
How did catastrophe happen?
Image shows damage to the ship. Pic: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
The 289m-long container ship was headed to Colombo in Sri Lanka at the time of the collision.
It was chartered by Danish shipping company Maersk, which said it was “horrified by what has happened”. It said its thoughts were with everyone affected.
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Watch marine traffic after bridge collapse
The same ship was previously involved in a minor incident when it hit a quay at the Port of Antwerp in Belgium in 2016, according to Vessel Finder and maritime accident site Shipwrecklog.
The vessel was reportedly damaged in the incident, but there were no injuries or pollution issues reported.
Pic: Baltimore City Fire Department Rescue Team
Bridge is ‘major artery’ for locals
The bridge, which is referred to locally as the Key Bridge, was described as a “major artery” for the area by resident Michael Brown.
“This is like an April Fools’ joke right now,” Mr Brown told Sky News’s US partner network NBC.
Local Michael Brown said the bridge collapse feels like an April Fools’ joke. Pic: NBC
“It [the bridge] is a major artery in the area not only for traffic but for the port. Hopefully, everyone is okay that is involved.”
Mr Brown said he uses the bridge to visit family and its destruction is a “major issue” – but he noted the “emphasis should be on getting whoever is in the water out”.
Coast guard vessel secures the perimeter at the scene. Pic: Reuters
The Interstate 695 – the road which runs across the bridge – was closed and traffic rerouted by the Maryland Transport Authority.
Impact on trade
The Port of Baltimore, which oceangoing ships reach by going under the bridge, is the 11th largest in the US, meaning its closure will cause knock-on effects for the industry.
Richard Meade, editor of Lloyd’s List – which provides news on the global maritime industry – said the collision will be a “significant and expensive” operation in terms of diverting marine traffic, the implications on trade and the rebuilding of the bridge itself.
The bridge before the collapse. File pic: Jon Bilous / Alamy
According to data from MarineTraffic, around 40 ships remain inside the closed port, with a further 30 having signalled that the port was their destination.
Built in 1977, the Key Bridge is one of the longest continuous truss bridges in the world, according to the National Steel Bridge Alliance.
It was named after the writer of The Star-Spangled Banner, the national anthem of the US, which was penned after a War of 1812 US-UK battle in Baltimore harbour.
David MacKenzie, chair of engineering consultancy, COWIfonden, predicted that rebuilding the bridge will cost 10 times more than the approximate $60m (£47m) spent on building it in the first place.
Tune into a special edition of The World with Yalda Hakim on Sky News tonight at 9pm.
Rudy Giuliani has been hospitalised following a car crash in New Hampshire, a spokesperson for the former New York City mayor said.
Mr Giuliani suffered “a fractured thoracic vertebrae, multiple lacerations and contusions, as well as injuries to his left arm and lower leg” when his vehicle was struck from behind while driving on a highway near Manchester on Saturday evening, according to Michael Ragusa, Mr Giuliani’s head of security.
“He sustained injuries but is in good spirits and recovering tremendously,” Mr Ragusa said in a statement on X, adding: “This was not a targeted attack.”
Mr Giuliani was in a rental car and “no one knew it was him”, according to Mr Ragusa.
His head of security said the 81-year-old had been “flagged down by a woman who was the victim of a domestic violence incident” and contacted police on her behalf. The crash shortly after was “random and unrelated” to the domestic violence incident, Mr Ragusa said.
Rudy Giuliani attended Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony in January. Pic: Julia Demaree Nikhinson/Pool via Reuters
Mr Giuliani, who worked as an attorney for Donald Trump in his failed efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, is expected to be released from hospital in a few days.
His son, Andrew Giuliani, thanked people for reaching out after hearing about his father’s accident, writing on X: “Your prayers mean the world.”
“As a son, I can tell you that I’m honored to have a Dad that I can call the toughest SOB I’ve ever seen,” he added.
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US
US blocks Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and 80 other officials from United Nations’ annual meeting in New York
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and 80 other officials have been blocked from attending September’s annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio has revoked the US visas of delegates from the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), and denied others from applying for one.
It is the latest step by Donald Trump’s administration to target Palestinians with visa restrictions, and follows the suspension of a programme to allow injured children from Gaza to receive treatment in the US.
Mahmoud Abbas addressed the general assembly in 2024, but is barred from next month’s meeting. Pic: Reuters
“It is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace,” a statement from the US State Department said.
It added that, to be considered partners for peace, both groups “must consistently repudiate terrorism, and end incitement to terrorism in education, as required by US law and as promised by the PLO”.
Offensive will cause ‘intolerable deaths’
Several US allies, including France, Malta, and Australia have announced plans to recognise Palestine as a state at September’s United Nations General Assembly. Canada and the UK will too, unless Israel meets certain conditions.
Israel declared Gaza’s largest city a dangerous combat zone on Friday.
The army launched a planned offensive that has drawn international condemnation.
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Thick smoke rises from Gaza City after Israeli strikes
Foreign ministers from Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway, Slovenia and Spain released a joint statement saying the military operations in Gaza City will cause “intolerable deaths of innocent Palestinian civilians”.
Gaza latest: Israel’s Gaza City offensive condemned
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering in Gaza City while enduring famine.
An Israeli armoured vehicle in northern Gaza on Friday. Pic: AP
Palestinians ride a truck carrying humanitarian aid in Gaza City. Pic: AP
The Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations (UN), Riyad Mansour, said Mr Abbas had planned to lead the delegation to the UN meetings and was expected to address the general assembly at the general debate, which begins on 23 September.
He was also expected to attend a high-level meeting co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia on 22 September about a two-state solution, a broad idea involving Israel coexisting with an independent Palestinian state.
The State of Palestine is an observer member of the UN, meaning it can speak at meetings but not vote on resolutions.
The State of Palestine cannot vote on UN resolutions. Pic: AP
US decision ‘contravenes international law’
The Palestinian Authority “expressed its deep regret and astonishment” at the visa decision, calling it “a violation of US commitments” as the host of the UN, and claiming it “contravenes international law”.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the world body would be seeking clarification in the “hope that this will be resolved”.
Hundreds of diplomats left when Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu began speaking at the general assembly in 2024. Pic: Reuters
The State Department said that the Palestinian Authority’s mission to the UN, comprising officials who are permanently based there, would not be included in the restrictions.
Under a 1947 UN agreement, the US is generally required to allow access for foreign diplomats to the UN in New York.
But Washington has said it can deny visas for security, extremism and foreign policy reasons.
Read more from Sky News:
Analysis: Israel is killing a lot of journalists
Hospitals ‘overwhelmed’ by malnutrition cases
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Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
The death toll in Gaza has now risen to 63,025, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.
It also reported five more malnutrition-related deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number during the war to 322, with 121 of them children.
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