Cargo ship’s journey before Baltimore Key Bridge collapse

A container ship was only minutes into its planned 27-day journey when it rammed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, on Tuesday morning, sending the bridge and several people into the Patapsco River.

The Singaporean ship called the Dali was docked in Baltimore on Saturday in preparation for its trip to Colombo, Sri Lanka, according to Vessel Finder.

Carrying Maersk cargo, the nearly 1,000-foot-long (300 metre) container ship was expected to arrive in Sri Lanka on 22 April.

But around 1.30am ET on Tuesday, the ship hit the bridge causing it to collapse as construction workers were working on the bridge.

It is unclear at this time what caused the Dali to crash into the bridge but investigators are looking into the incident while a rescue mission is underway to find the individuals who are believed to have been flung into the river.

Built in 2015, the Dali is currently operated by Synergy Group, a ship-managing company with more than 660 vessels under its technical management. According to a press release from Synergy, the Dali is owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd.

Before Tuesday’s incident, the Dali spent the last month traveling from Panama to New York.

The Independent has reached out to Synergy Group for comment.

The vessel was chartered by Maersk to carry Maersk’s customer’s cargo from Baltimore to Colombo in a nearly month-long journey, according to a statement from the company.

Under the pilotage of two pilots, the Dali departed from Baltimore around 1am. With wind speeds of 6.2 knots (7.2 miles per hour), the ship travelled at 7.9 kn (9 mph) for approximately 30 minutes.

Just minutes into the journey, the ship made a mayday call as it lost power. It then hit the Francis Scott Key Bridge.

All the crew members, including the two pilots, have been accounted for and there are no reports of any injuries onboard, according to the Synergy Group.

Maersk said none of its crew or personnel were on board the vessel when the incident occurred.

However, at least seven people, believed to be construction workers, who were on the bridge fell into the water. Six are still missing.

“We are horrified by what has happened in Baltimore, and our thoughts are with all of those affected,” Maersk said in a statement.