WASHINGTON, March 28 (Xinhua) -- The Francis Scott Key Bridge in the U.S. city of Baltimore collapsed early Tuesday after a large ship collided with it, leaving six people missing.
The tragic incident occurred at about 1:30 a.m. local time (0530 GMT) on Tuesday. A Dali container vessel experienced a power failure before the collision. The operators of the cargo ship issued a mayday call moments before the vessel crashed.
Engineers suggest that the bridge's metal truss design, featuring a suspended deck, played a role in its collapse. The ship appeared to hit a main concrete pier, which rests on soil underwater and is part of the foundation, Reuters reported.
Eight people initially went into the water and two were rescued from the Patapsco River earlier, with one in critical condition, according to local authorities.
Six workers who are presumed dead came from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, local media reported.
In a statement, Baltimore-headquartered immigration services non-profit Global Refuge said disasters like this one disproportionately affect the immigrant community of the city, as they frequently work in challenging and hazardous occupations.
"Bridges can be rebuilt, but the damage inflicted on these families can never fully be repaired," the organization's president and CEO Krish O'Mara Vignarajah said.
The tragedy also poses substantial economic and infrastructural losses. Economic analysis company IMPLAN indicated that preliminary cost estimates for rebuilding the bridge stand at 600 million U.S. dollars.
The closure of the port for just one month could see a total loss of 28 million dollars for the state of Maryland, said an IMPLAN analysis.
The costly rebuilding process is expected to be funded by the U.S. federal government.
