Rescue ongoing as cars and people fall into water after ship strike causes Baltimore bridge to collapse

Upwards of seven people are reported to be in the water of the Patapsco River after the cargo ship Dali hit the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Maryland, causing it to collapse. The incident has been described by officials as a “developing mass casualty event”.

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).

Vehicles can be seen in the video falling from the bridge.

Earlier, Baltimore’s fire service said up to 20 people were reported to be in the water, but that number has since been revised.

All Baltimore port traffic has been suspended until further notice, the Maryland Transport Authority, said.

In an update on Tuesday morning, James Wallace, the chief of Baltimore’s fire department, said:

• Two people have already been rescued from the water;
• One of those rescued is in a “very serious condition” and the other was not injured;
• Authorities are still looking for “upwards of seven individuals” in the water;
• There is an active ongoing search and rescue operation in place over a large area;
• The crew of the ship are still on board the vessel but are communicating with the coastguard;
• Sonar devices have detected the presence of vehicles submerged in the water.