Cargo ship lost power before colliding with Baltimore bridge- 6 presumed dead

The US Coast Guard says it is suspending its search and rescue efforts for the six individuals still missing after the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.

“I’d like to announce tonight that based on the length of time that we’ve gone in this search, the extensive search efforts we’ve put into it, the water temperature, that at this point we do not believe that we’re going to find any of these individuals still alive,” Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath told reporters at a Tuesday evening news conference.

The collapse occurred after a massive container ship lost power early Tuesday and crashed into the bridge, sending people and vehicles into the frigid Patapsco River.

The six missing people are believed to have been part of a construction crew repairing potholes on the bridge, Maryland Transportation Secretary Paul J. Wiedefeld said at a news conference earlier Tuesday.

“We are going to suspend the active search and rescue efforts. Coast Guard’s not going away, none of our partners are going away, but we’re just going to transition to a different phase,” Gilreath said.

Earlier Tuesday, two people were pulled from the Patapsco River, Baltimore City Fire Department Chief James Wallace said. One was not injured and the other was taken to a local trauma center in “very serious condition,” he said. A patient being treated at the University of Maryland Medical Center was discharged later Tuesday, the hospital said in a statement.

Baltimore City Council Member Phylicia Porter told CNN’s Boris Sanchez on Tuesday afternoon a body had been recovered from the river, but later said she misspoke. Col. Roland L. Butler Jr., secretary of Maryland State Police, confirmed during the Tuesday evening news conference that no bodies have been recovered from the river.

Efforts will now shift focus to finding the missing people to provide closure to their families, Butler said.

“At this point, we do not know where they are. But we intend to give it our best effort to help these families find closure,” he said.