O The FBI has opened a criminal investigation into the collapse of the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore, USA, according to the Washington Post.
It should be noted that the incident happened on March 26th, after a container ship collided with a support pillar.
According to the North American daily, which cites two sources, the federal criminal investigation will focus, in part, on the ship and the fact that its crew left the port of Baltimore knowing that the cargo ship had serious problems with the system.
Another source familiar with the matter confirmed the information to the Associated Press, saying that it focuses on the circumstances that led to the accident and whether all federal laws were complied with.
The container ship ‘Dali’ was leaving the port of Baltimore in the early hours of March 26, loaded with cargo and bound for Sri Lanka, when it hit one of the bridge’s support columns, causing the structure to collapse into the Patapsco River.
The incident caused six deaths (two Mexicans, two Guatemalans, one Honduran and one Salvadoran) among workers working on an infrastructure project.
During relief and rescue operations, divers recovered three bodies, while the remaining three victims are still missing.
National Transportation Safety Board Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy said last week that investigators are focusing on the electrical power system of the massive ship that went off course.
The ship had already had power problems moments before the accident, as evidenced in videos that show the lights turning off and on.
Jennifer Homendy said the information gleaned from the ship’s voyage data recorder is relatively basic.
“The information in the engine room will help us tremendously,” he added.
Before the collision, the container ship’s crew issued an emergency alert, which cut off vehicle traffic on the bridge and prevented a major tragedy, according to authorities.
The US Department of Transportation then said it had four priorities: reopen the port, deal with supply chain disruptions until the port reopens, rebuild the bridge and deal with the implications for land transportation until the reconstruction is complete. .
The blockade of the port of Baltimore, the 9th largest in the United States, is expected to have serious economic consequences for the region.
Both the local police and the Secretary of Homeland Security of the United States, Alejandro Mayorkas, stated after the events that there was no evidence that it was a terrorist act or even intentional, but the FBI joined the initial investigations.
The Francis Scott Key Bridge (named after the author of the lyrics of the United States anthem) was the largest in this city in the state of Maryland, measuring 2,632 meters long, and supported the passage of more than 11 million vehicles per year.
Immortalized in the North American series ‘The Wire’, construction began on the Patapsco River in 1972 and was inaugurated on March 23, 1977.
[Notícia atualizada às 14h51]
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Source: https://www.noticiasaominuto.com/mundo/2541070/fbi-abre-investigacao-criminal-a-queda-de-ponte-em-baltimore
