Tuesday morning, whispers from students and staff caught my attention about a bridge in Baltimore collapsing. In my mind, I pictured a small little park bridge crumbling and maybe a few people being dropped only a foot into a puddle of water. I didn’t understand why some of the people I overheard seemed so distraught. Naturally, I had to see what the commotion was about and was stunned to find what they were talking about. 

Early Tuesday morning, Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed after a ship collided with the bridge’s support column. The impact caused the entire bridge to crumble into the Patapsco River. Maryland’s Governor Wes Moore has declared a state emergency due to the collision. 

Maryland Transportation Authority Police were on the site quickly after the crew of the 948-foot cargo ship notified authorities that their ship had lost power moments before it struck the bridge going 9mph. Thankfully, police prevented many vehicles from driving on the bridge before the catastrophe.

Unfortunately, due to the bridge being the third-longest main span in the world measuring over 1,200 feet, officials could not protect everyone. At least seven cars and construction workers went down with the bridge which automatically launched a search-and-rescue operation. The operation is ongoing to rescue those unaccounted for. Authorities are using Sonar (Sound Navigation and Ranging) and underwater drones to assist in rescue operations.

The Key Bridge, which was named after the man who wrote the lyrics for “The Star-Spangled Banner,” was officially opened in March 1977 after an estimated cost of $110 million that led to five years of construction. The bridge ended up being the third-largest main-span bridge in the world spanned to 1,201 feet. 

Governor Wes Moore releases the following statement on the Francis Scott Key Bridge:

“My office is in close communication with U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski, and the Baltimore Fire Department as emergency personnel are on the scene following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. 

I have declared a State of Emergency here in Maryland and we are working with an interagency team to quickly deploy federal resources from the Biden Administration. 

We are thankful for the brave men and women who are carrying out efforts to rescue those involved and pray for everyone’s safety.

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.”

As rising adults, it is essential that we keep up-to-date with national news and current events so that we can have a better understanding of the world outside of ours. Keeping ourselves educated on events going on in the world can impact how we can learn to handle these similar tragedies when it is our turn to handle them. Let’s remain mature and have empathy in circumstances as such even if these problems don’t affect us. 

Please note: there have been many updates since writing this article surrounding the status of missing persons and statements from authorities.