The images have already gone around the world.
The Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed on Tuesday March 26 in the port of the American city located in the state of Maryland.
The collapse of the structure was due to “the collision of a cargo ship with the support beam, causing the bridge to break and fall into the water,” the City of Baltimore said in a statement.
VIDEO.
United States: Baltimore bridge collapses when hit by cargo ship
In the images, a boat can be seen in the distance approaching the bridge and hitting a pillar, causing the imposing steel structure to immediately collapse into the Patapsco River.
Inaugurated in 1977 after five years of construction, the Francis Scott Key Bridge owes its name to the amateur poet and author of the American national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner”.
Also known as the Outer Harbor Bridge, it has a total length of 2.6 km and is located 56 m above the river.
It is a continuous truss bridge, that is to say a bridge whose side beams are made up of triangulated metal bars assembled into a truss, a construction technique that appeared in the United States.
A road on the Baltimore Beltway
It was following the constant increase in traffic in Baltimore in the 1970s that the mayor at the time launched the idea of building a four-lane bridge to complete the loop of a major section of the city .
This two-lane road is in fact part of Interstate 695, the ring road that surrounds the city of Baltimore.
Also read: Bridge collapsed after cargo ship collision in Baltimore: “No pillar would withstand such a shock”
If a tunnel project had first been mentioned, it was ultimately the idea of a steel bridge with more attractive operating costs which was retained, in particular thanks to the possibility of transporting dangerous materials in complete safety. security.
Since then, the structure, which cost more than $60 million, has become a must-see in Baltimore.
The Francis Scott Key Bridge carries as many as 11.3 million vehicles each year, according to Maryland Transportation Authority.
It was used a lot by trucks transporting dangerous materials, the transport of the latter being prohibited in the tunnels leading to the port of Baltimore.
The Francis Scott Key Bridge before its collapse.
Getty Images via AFP/ Mark Wilson 2018 Getty Images
“The loss of this bridge will devastate the entire region, as well as the entire Eastern Seaboard,” said Maryland Senator Johnny Ray Salling.
So far, according to authorities, at least seven people have fallen into the water and two of them have been recovered, one in serious condition and the other without injury.