Ship Changed Direction Before Colliding into Baltimore Bridge

A container ship that collided with Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge on Tuesday reportedly changed direction moments before the crash.

A Singapore-flagged vessel hit the bridge at around 1:30 a.m., causing it to snap in several places and collapse into the Patapsco River. The incident, which was captured on camera, saw a fire break out on board the ship as the steel structure fell on to it, while vehicles were hurled into the waters below. A rescue operation remains underway.

Tracking data appears to show that the ship changed direction just before it struck a support pillar of the bridge. It is unclear why this happened, and whether it changed course because of a loss of power.

Global ship tracking service Marine Traffic shared a shared a graphic showing the vessel's course on X (formerly Twitter).

As the vessel approaches the bridge it appears to veer off-course shortly before striking the support pillar. The cargo ship was bound for Colombo, Sri Lanka, according to the X post. The graphic can be viewed on the X post below:

Richard Worley, Baltimore's police chief, said there was "no indication" the collision had been deliberate or that it was an act of terrorism.

An unclassified report by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) said the Dali "lost propulsion" as it was leaving the port and had warned Maryland officials of a possible collision as it "lost control", according to reports.

Newsweek has reached out to CISA, a government agency, by email seeking further information and comment.

Photos shared of the scene on X by Harford County's volunteer fire and EMS crews showed dawn breaking over the river, with police lights flashing on the water at the scene as the rescue operation continued.

Two people were pulled from the water after the bridge collapse, according to Baltimore fire chief James Wallace. He said one was in a serious condition, while the other was not seriously injured.

It has not yet been confirmed how many people were on the bridge at the time of the collapse.

The ship's owner is listed as Grace Ocean, and its manager is listed as Synergy Marine, with both firms headquartered in Singapore.

Synergy Marine Corp told news agency Reuters that the Dali collided with one of the bridge's pillars and said all its crew members, including the two pilots, had been accounted for with no reports of any injuries.

The ship had been chartered by shipping company Maersk at the time, and the Danish company released a statement saying: "We are horrified by what has happened in Baltimore, and our thoughts are with all of those affected."

Maryland Governor Wes Moore declared a state of emergency. He said in a statement the state was "working with an interagency team to quickly deploy federal resources from the Biden Administration." The FBI in Baltimore said on X its personnel were "on scene."

Newsweek has reached out by email to the Baltimore Police Department, the Baltimore Fire Department, and the U.S. Coast Guard.

Update 3/26/24, 9:16 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include comments from Maersk and other officials.