Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed early Tuesday morning after a support column was struck by a vessel, sending cars into the Patapsco River, launching a search-and-rescue operation and prompting Gov. Wes Moore to declare a state of emergency.

A spokesperson for the Baltimore City Fire Department said a major rescue operation was underway with all lanes closed and with all traffic being rerouted from the 1.6-mile steel bridge that is part of Interstate 695.

In a Tuesday morning news conference, just a few hours after the incident, Baltimore Fire Department Chief James Wallace said authorities are “still very much in an active search and rescue posture.” He said they are searching for “upwards of seven individuals” and that sonar has detected the presence of vehicles in the water.

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

Moore said in a statement that he has declared a state of emergency and will work to “quickly deploy federal resources.”

“We are thankful for the brave men and women who are carrying out efforts to rescue those involved and pray for everyone’s safety,” Moore said in the statement. “We will remain in close contact with federal, state, and local entities that are carrying out rescue efforts as we continue to assess and respond to this tragedy.”

A spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard said the 948-foot cargo ship Dali struck the bridge at approximately 1:20 a.m. In video from the incident, black smoke can be seen from the vessel.

“We are deploying assets in response,” said Petty Officer First Class Matthew West, including two response boats from Curtis Bay and one from Annapolis. A helicopter was also deployed to assist in the “search and rescue” and several police helicopters were seen circling the area Tuesday morning.

West said he had no additional information on the Dali, a Singapore-flagged ship, including whether officials had been in contact with the ship since the collision or its current status.

The ship was built in 2015 and arriving from Norfolk, Virginia, according to Vessel Finder, a ship tracking website. It departed from the Port of Baltimore around 1 a.m., according to MarineTraffic, a separate tracking website.

The cause of the incident is yet to be determined, according to a statement from Dali’s owners and managers. Two pilots were aboard the ship and they, as well as all 22 Indian crew members, have “been accounted for and there are no reports of any injuries.”

There has been no pollution, the ship’s manager, Synergy Marine Group, said. Wallace said authorities had not confirmed if any fuel spilled into the water, but said there had been an odor of “diesel fuel.”

The National Data Buoy Center reported water temperatures in that area of the Patapsco were about 49 degrees at 4 a.m. The air temperature was 41 and winds were light.

Clear Video of Traffic movement on Bridge before hit by a ship

At least 20 vehicles were on the bridge.

#keybridge #baltimore #Ship #FrancisScottKeyBridge #bridgecollapse #USA #BREAKINGNEWS #Baltimore #Maryland #BREAKING pic.twitter.com/NkH36hQ8Qp

— Chaudhary Parvez (@ChaudharyParvez) March 26, 2024

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said in a social media post that he was aware of the incident, and was in contact with Moore and local officials. Scott said he was heading to the scene.

“Emergency personnel are on scene, and efforts are underway,” Scott said on X, the website formerly known as Twitter.

Also on X, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said he’d been in contact with Moore and Scott and had offered the U.S. Department of Transportation’s “support following the vessel strike and collapse of the Francis Scott Key bridge.”

The Maryland Department of Emergency Management has staff on-site, and is coordinating with the governor’s office, the state police and the traffic authority in response to the bridge collapse. Agency spokesman Travis Brown said that the department has raised its emergency operation center’s status to advanced, and that the state joint operations center is “in full swing.”

The Maryland Transportation Authority noted on social media that Interstate 95 and I-895 tunnels are alternative ways to travel across the harbor. Vehicles transporting hazardous materials, however, are prohibited in tunnels and “should use the western section of I-695 around tunnels,” the authority posted.

The Key Bridge, which opened in March 1977 after five years of construction and cost an estimated $110 million, is named for the writer of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The bridge is one of the Baltimore harbor’s three toll crossings.

The bridge carried more than 12.4 million commercial and passenger vehicles in 2023, according to a Maryland state government report issued last November.

Baltimore Sun reporters Christine Condon, Natalie Jones, Hannah Gaskill, Sam Janesch and Lorraine Mirabella contributed to this article.

This story will be updated.