As of: March 27, 2024, 6:39 a.m
By: Bettina Menzel
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People in the US city of Baltimore are shocked after the harbor bridge collapsed.
According to local residents, the earth shook as the structure collapsed.
The search for missing people continues.
Baltimore – On Tuesday night, a container ship rammed a bridge in the US city of Baltimore.
The structure collapsed, dragging people and cars into the cold water.
According to preliminary figures, six people are currently missing.
Eyewitnesses reported tremors that resembled an earthquake.
Bridge collapse in Baltimore: “It felt like an earthquake”
It initially remained unclear why the ship rammed the 2.5 kilometer long bridge.
But the effects were felt immediately by residents.
It sounded like “a huge rumble of thunder,” an eyewitness told US broadcaster
CBS News
.
“And then [...] it felt like an earthquake, the whole house vibrated.
It was like my house was collapsing,” said the resident.
He has lived in this neighborhood for 57 years and still remembers how the bridge was built.
“I can’t believe she’s gone.”
In the US city of Baltimore, a four-lane car bridge has largely collapsed after a ship collided.
© Kaitlin Newman/The Baltimore Banner/AP/dpa +++ dpa-Bildfunk +++
Another eyewitness confirmed this assessment to
BBC
.
You could feel it, said the man who lived near the bridge.
“The whole house shook.” In the middle of the night, a “rumbling noise” was heard, another eyewitness reported to the station.
At first she wasn't sure what it was, but shortly afterwards she heard news of the bridge collapse.
“You see it, but you just don't believe that something like this could happen,” continued the resident, who emphasized that her first thought was how many people could have been on the bridge when it collapsed.
Bridge collapse in Baltimore: Up to 20 people fall into the cold water
According to authorities, workers were busy repairing concrete on the bridge at the time of the accident.
Up to 20 people could have fallen into the water, reported the US broadcaster
CNN
, citing fire department information.
According to experts, people can only survive in the nine-degree cold water for up to three hours.
In addition to the cold, the current at the accident site also poses a danger. According to their own statements, the fire department has already managed to rescue two people from the water after the bridge collapsed in Baltimore, with one of those rescued being in the hospital in serious condition.
The national artery Interstate 695 led over the bridge to the Port of Baltimore.
Residents described the impact of the collapse as “catastrophic”.
“Firstly, the port is blocked.
“Secondly, we won’t be getting any new car deliveries at this point,” a witness speculated in an interview with
CBS News
.
Baltimore is an important import port for cars.
Amazon is also “right on the other side of the river,” the man continued.
In his opinion, the tunnels will be overloaded.
Experts have a similar assessment of the situation: Lars Jansen, a container ship specialist, described the events to
the BBC
as a “major catastrophe” that “will lead to significant problems for US importers and exporters on the US East Coast.”