BALTIMORE — A massive container ship issued a “mayday” early Tuesday as it headed toward the iconic Francis Scott Key Bridge, losing power before colliding with one of the bridge’s support columns and causing a catastrophic collapse of the span.

As the vessel struck the bridge in the middle of the night, it caused a din that could be heard ashore and immediately toppled an essential mid-Atlantic thoroughfare into the frigid waters.

Several cars were knocked into the Patapsco River following the collapse, authorities were searching for six construction workers who had been repairing potholes on the bridge. The six people were presumed dead.

Two others were rescued — one who was briefly hospitalized and another who declined to go to a hospital. Extensive rescue efforts continued through out the day Tuesday. Searchers are due to return to the waters Wednesday morning.

As Baltimore awoke to the tragedy, states of emergency were declared by both the mayor and governor, the waters teemed with search-and-rescue efforts, and the cityscape appeared strangely altered by the missing bridge and wreckage left behind.

Before the collision, the ship’s crew notified authorities that the vessel had lost power. That “mayday” allowed Maryland Transportation Authority Police on the highway above to prevent many cars from driving onto the bridge minutes before the catastrophe.

“These people are heroes,” Gov. Wes Moore said at a news conference. “They saved lives last night.”

Moore added that there was no evidence that the collision was a terrorist attack.

He vowed that the bridge will be rebuilt, though he noted it was too early to estimate when or at what cost.

In a White House address on Tuesday, President Joe Biden said the federal government would pay for a new bridge.

“I expect the Congress to support my effort. This is going to take some time, but the people of Baltimore can count on us, though, to stick with it every step of the way until the port is reopened and the bridge is rebuilt,” he said.

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“Aside from the obvious tragedy, this incident will have significant and long-lasting impacts on the region,” American Trucking Associations spokesperson Jessica Gail said, calling Key Bridge and Baltimore’s port “critical components” of the nation’s infrastructure.

Gail noted that 1.3 million trucks cross the bridge every year — 3,600 a day. Trucks that carry hazardous materials will now have to make 30 miles of detours around Baltimore because they are prohibited from using the city’s tunnels, she said, adding to delays and increasing fuel costs.

A few hours after the 1:27 a.m. collision, Baltimore Fire Department Chief James Wallace said authorities had detected the presence of vehicles in the water by using sonar. Water in the area is about 50 feet deep.

Authorities have not determined the precise cause, but U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin told The Baltimore Sun in a phone interview that indications point to the vessel losing power, causing it to lose steering.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating, a spokesperson for the board said.

A Coast Guard briefing report obtained by The Sun stated that “a harbor pilot and assistant were onboard and reported power issues, multiple alarms on the bridge, and loss of propulsion prior to the incident.”

“This is a tragedy that you could never imagine … It looked like something out of an action movie,” Mayor Brandon Scott said at a news conference.

Video from the incident shows the container ship, billowing smoke, colliding with the bridge support, and much of the structure quickly collapsing. Just before the collision, the ship’s lights appear to turn on and off multiple times.

The Singapore-flagged cargo ship named Dali had been traveling about 8 knots (roughly 9 mph). It was under the operation of a local pilot, as is required by Maryland law, to guide it through the port. The pilot will undergo drug and alcohol testing as part of the investigation.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

Cars exit from the Baltimore Port after the cargo ship Dali ran into and collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Kena Betancur/Getty Images)
Parts of the Francis Scott Key Bridge remain after a container ship collided with one of the bridge’s support Tuesday, in Baltimore. (WJLA via AP)