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Conspiracy Theories following Key Bridge Collapse

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Conspiracy Theories following Key Bridge Collapse

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Quick Take

The Francis Scott Key Bridge near Baltimore collapsed after being hit by a cargo ship in the early morning on March 26. Although all evidence points to an accident, conspiracy theorists spread the baseless claim that it was intentionally caused by a "cyber-attack." Officials have dismissed the claim.

Full Story

A cargo ship ran into the Francis Scott Key Bridge near Baltimore at about 1:30 a.m. on March 26, sending the center stretch of the 1.6-mile bridge into the Patapsco River and leaving six road repair workers presumed dead.

From the start, authorities have described the crash as an accident.

At the first press conference, held at about 6:30 a.m., Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said, "There is absolutely no indication that there is any terrorism or that this was done on purpose." His department had been working with "the FBI and other federal and state agencies to get all the intel that we have, but there's absolutely no indication that it was intentional," he said.

Later in the day, William DelBagno, who leads the FBI's Baltimore field office, said the same thing: "There is no specific or credible information to suggest that there are ties to terrorism in this incident."

That office also released a similar statement the same day.

And President Joe Biden, who made remarks from the White House in the afternoon, said, "Everything so far indicates that this was a terrible accident. At this time we have no other indication, no other reason to believe there was any intentional act here."

Despite the lack of evidence and the clear statements from officials, conspiracy-laden claims have been racking up millions of views on social media.

For example, Alex Jones - the conspiracy theorist behind InfoWars who is perhaps best known for denying that the school shooting in Sandy Hook, Connecticut, actually happened - wrote on X, "Looks deliberate to me. A cyber-attack is probable. WW3 has already started..."

He cited nothing for support other than a post from social media influencer Andrew Tate, who also has a history of spreading misinformation. Tate had claimed, "This ship was cyber-attacked. Lights go off and it deliberately steers towards the bridge supports. Foreign agents of the USA attack digital infrastructures. Nothing is safe. Black Swan event imminent."

The idea of a "black swan" event came from mathematician Nassim Nicholas Taleb, who described the theory in a 2007 book as an improbable event that has a large impact and is later explained as being less random than it actually was. However, the term has recently been adopted by conspiracy theorists and has appeared in many of the posts suggesting that the bridge collapse was intentional.

As we said, though, there's no evidence that the crash was anything other than accidental.

Here's what we know so far:

A cargo ship named the Dali, which was registered in Singapore, departed the Port of Baltimore shortly before 1 a.m. It was at about half of its capacity, carrying almost 5,000 shipping containers, according to the Synergy Group, which was operating the vessel.

The ship traveled about 4 nautical miles, which is approximately 4.5 miles, and reached speeds of about 8 knots, which is a little over 9 miles per hour, according to location data compiled by myshiptracking.com.

The ship hit a pylon supporting the bridge at about 1:30 a.m., Jennifer Homendy, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, said at an afternoon press conference.

Before hitting the bridge, the ship's crew "notified authorities of a power issue," Maryland Gov. Wes Moore had explained at a press conference earlier in the day. He confirmed that the ship had lost power.

Between the time of that mayday call and the collapse of the bridge, officials were able to stop traffic going onto the bridge, Moore said.

There was also a crew of eight workers on the bridge filling potholes - two of them were rescued and six are presumed dead. In an interview on NBC's "Today" show on March 27, Moore said that first responders had "started to send out notifications" to the workers, and the Baltimore Banner reported on radio communications between officers in the moments before the crash that indicated there was less than a minute between when officers began their communication about the workers and the crash.

The six workers who are presumed dead were immigrants who had come from Guatemala, El Salvador, Mexico and Honduras.

Not much information on the crash is available at this point, Homendy said, since the NTSB had been "standing back" in order to allow the search-and-rescue operation to continue for possible survivors. That rescue operation ended at about 7:30 p.m. on March 26, U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath said at an evening press conference.

So, according to the early assessment of all authorities who have publicly spoken, this was an accident. There has been no evidence so far to indicate it was an intentional crash, or that it was caused by a "cyber-attack."
Editor's note: FactCheck.org is one of several organizations working with Facebook to debunk misinformation shared on social media. Our previous stories can be found . Facebook has over our editorial content.
Sources

WBAL-TV 11 Baltimore (@WBALTV11). " LIVE: KEY BRIDGE COLLAPSE." YouTube. 26 Mar 2024.

The Telegraph (@telegraph). " In full: Baltimore bridge collapse is 'mass casualty event' - watch press conference." YouTube. 26 Mar 2024.

Gov. Wes Moore (@GovWesMoore). " Governor Wes Moore Press Conference on the Collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore." YouTube. 26 Mar 2024.

Federal Bureau of Investigation. Press release. " FBI Baltimore Statement on Francis Scott Key Bridge Collapse." 26 Mar 2024.

The White House (@WhiteHouse). " President Biden Delivers Remarks on the Collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge." YouTube. 26 Mar 2024.

Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore. Press release. " MPA will support the US Coast Guard in its investigations." 26 Mar 2024.

Synergy Marine Group. Press release. " 'DALI', Francis Scott Key Bridge Incident." 26 Mar 2024.

Maersk. Press release. " Cargo to and from Port of Baltimore: TA2, TA5, TP12, Amex, AGAS." 26 Mar 2024.

NTSBgov (@NTSBgov). " NTSB Media Briefing - Francis Scott Key Bridge struck by Cargo Ship Dali." YouTube. 26 Mar 2024.

Willis, Adam and Lee O. Sanderlin. " Did state's warning make it to construction crew on Key Bridge? " Baltimore Banner. 27 Mar 2024.

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Baseless Conspiracy Theories Follow Key Bridge Collapse - FactCheck.org

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The Francis Scott Key Bridge near Baltimore collapsed after being hit by a cargo ship in the early morning on March 26. Although all evidence points to an accident, conspiracy theorists spread the baseless claim that it was intentionally caused by a "cyber-attack." Officials have dismissed the claim.

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Safety Concerns Raised after Bridge Collapse

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Safety Concerns Raised after Bridge Collapse

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In the moments before the cargo ship Dali rammed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge and sent it crumbling into the water, a flurry of urgent warnings crackled over radios and enabled police to block traffic from getting on the span, likely saving lives.

But those warnings seemingly didn't reach the six construction workers who were killed in last week's collapse of the Baltimore bridge. Their deaths have raised questions about whether the construction company took proper precautions, including keeping a safety boat nearby that might have been able to warn them at least a few seconds before impact.
READ MORE: How Baltimore's Key Bridge collapse will affect supply chains and the economy
Federal regulations require construction companies to keep such boats, commonly known as skiffs, on hand whenever crews are working over waterways, safety experts told The Associated Press. There is no indication that the construction company, Brawner Builders, had a rescue boat on the water or ready to be launched as the bridge fell.

"If you're working over a bridge like that, the standard interpretation doesn't give you an option," said Janine McCartney, a safety engineer for HHC Safety Engineering Services Inc. "The skiff is required, period."

Coast Guard representatives and other officials said they were unaware of any Brawner boat in the water at the time of the March 26 collapse. And satellite images from around the time of the collapse appeared to show no skiff in the river near the bridge.

Even if the workers had been warned that the giant ship was about to hit, it's unclear if they would have had enough time to scramble to safety.

The archived recordings of the bridge's maintenance radio channel from early that morning include only one minor exchange between two maintenance workers about the approaching ship, though it's unclear if either was on or near the span at the time. In the exchange, a man with a muffled voice seemed to ask what was going on, and the other replied, "They're just holding traffic because a ship lost its steering, that's all." The bridge collapsed less than 30 seconds later.

But if a safety boat were present, experts said, it might have been able to use a marine radio and required walkie-talkies to warn the construction workers about the Dali's distress calls, possibly giving them a chance to act. Authorities say a construction inspector was able to run to a section of the bridge that didn't collapse, though it's unknown what warning, if any, he received.

A Brawner representative declined to comment for this story, saying the company is focused on taking care of the families of the workers, who were filling potholes on the bridge when it collapsed. Brawner has used safety skiffs for work on bridges in the past, according to a deposition of a company executive that was part of a 2011 lawsuit.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations say construction companies performing work over waterways must have at least one safety boat available. OSHA officials have said in rule interpretations over the years that the required boat can "ensure prompt rescue of employees that fall into the water, regardless of other precautions taken to prevent this from occurring."

An OSHA spokesperson didn't respond to repeated requests for clarification on that regulation.

Some states have rules clarifying that the boats aren't required under certain conditions, such as when the work being done is contained within the guardrails of a bridge. But Maryland isn't among them and does require that a safety skiff be present when workers are over or near water. A spokesperson for the Maryland Occupational Safety and Health, which oversees compliance with federal labor regulations, declined to comment on the Key Bridge collapse or Brawner's safety record, citing the open investigation into the tragedy.
READ MORE: What to know about the cargo ship that took down Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge
Dennis O'Bryan, a maritime lawyer, said he believes the skiff requirement remains in effect even when there is little risk of drowning unless the company secures an exemption from the state.

"If there was a skiff there, it would have heard the mayday call and radioed the workers to get off the bridge," O'Bryan said. "There needs to be an investigation into whether the skiff was there and, if not, why it wasn't."

O'Bryan isn't representing any of the families of the workers who were on the Key Bridge when it collapsed. But in 2011, he represented a Brawner employee who was injured while operating a safety boat meant to monitor workers on a bridge. The lawsuit accused the company of not properly staffing the boat. It was settled for an undisclosed sum.

The AP requested a copy of the safety plan that Brawner submitted for the Key Bridge project, which was among more than 25 contracts worth a total of over $120 million that the state awarded the company in the past five years. The request was still being processed as of Tuesday.

Brawner has been cited three times for seven safety violations since 2018, including four citations for failing to provide proper fall protections, OSHA's online enforcement records show. The company was fined close to $11,000 in informal OSHA settlements.

Several project foremen interviewed by the AP said that despite OSHA's strict interpretations, it is not uncommon for construction companies to forgo the use of a safety skiff on jobs that don't pose an imminent risk of drowning, and it's unclear when the regulation is enforced. In the past decade, there has been just one violation issued in Maryland during a bridge construction project for failure to provide a life-saving skiff, according to a review of available online OSHA records.

Some construction experts said a boat wouldn't have made a difference because of the steep drop, the little time the crew had to react, and the tons of steel and debris that made it incredibly difficult for even trained rescuers to locate and reach the missing workers' bodies.

"You can have the most perfect safety plan and safety measures in place, and unless you have time to implement them, then who knows," said Julio Palomo, president of Laborers International Union of North America Local 11, which represents Maryland and other parts of the Washington, D.C., area. "Would it just have put more people in danger having that boat in the water? We just don't know."

Others, though, said a safety boat might have had a better chance to issue a warning over a direct radio line to the crew, something companies could consider when writing future safety plans in light of the Key Bridge collapse.

Ryan Papariello, a safety and health specialist with the Laborers' Health and Safety Fund of North America, said that in safety plans for work on bridges, companies should think about including flotation devices and clear communication with the Coast Guard or anyone that's patrolling the water. He also said future plans might include the use of specific loud noises that signal workers to evacuate.

"Obviously this wasn't a foreseeable incident," Papariello said. "A lot of the contractors that we see - and I'm not blaming the contractor - they just don't have a valid rescue plan in place."
Associated Press reporters Rebecca Boone and Mike Catalini contributed.

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Construction workers had little warning as Baltimore's Key Bridge collapsed, raising safety concerns

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The deaths of six construction workers on Baltimore's Key Bridge have raised questions about whether the construction company took proper precautions, including keeping a safety boat nearby that might have been able to warn them at least a few seconds before impact.

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About the Construction Workers on Bridge

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About the Construction Workers on Bridge

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The Key Bridge was hit by a ship and collapsed Tuesday. (Jonathan Newton for The Washington Post)
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The six construction workers who were on the Key Bridge in Baltimore when it collapsed are presumed dead, authorities said Tuesday evening, ending a day-long rescue mission in cold and murky waters.

The six victims, all employees of Brawner Builders, a general contractor, were repairing masonry and potholes on the bridge when a 985-foot freighter lost power and crashed into the structure, which rose 185 feet above the Patapsco River at its peak height. Among those presumed deceased are Miguel Luna, who had worked for the construction company for about 15 years, and Maynor Suazo Sandoval, from Honduras, who was about to turn 39, their families said.

Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, 35, from Mexico, and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, 26, from Guatemala, also died in the collapse, authorities said. Divers on Wednesday found their bodies inside a red pickup truck under 25 feet of water.

Gustavo Torres, the executive director of the Latino and immigrant organization Casa, said Luna was a father of three from El Salvador and "a longtime member of our Casa family, adding an even deeper layer of sorrow to this already grievous situation." Suazo Sandoval was also a Casa member, Torres said. His family described him as a devoted husband and father to a 5-year-old daughter and a 17-year-old son.
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The victims were from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, officials said. It remained unclear by Wednesday evening how many vehicles were submerged in the water and if other victims were killed or injured in the disaster. Emergency responders rescued two other workers from the water early Tuesday, one uninjured and the other who authorities said was hospitalized in "very serious condition" and later released. One was an employee with Brawner Builders.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) said he spoke to one of the victims and called his survival "pretty miraculous."

Col. Roland L. Butler Jr., secretary of the Maryland State Police, said Tuesday evening that it was a "distinct possibility" that motorists were on the bridge at the time of the collapse, and that they would also be presumed dead.

The chief spokesman for the Baltimore Fire Department, Kevin Cartwright, called the water-rescue-and-recovery effort the city's largest in a decade and warned earlier Tuesday that the number of victims could exceed six.

"This is herculean," Cartwright said. "We are going to work and work and work until we bring this to a close and bring some peace to the families."

Community members attended a church vigil in Baltimore on March 26 for the six construction workers who have been presumed dead after the Key Bridge collapse. (Video: Erin Patrick O'Connor, Whitney Shefte/The Washington Post)

The collision occurred about 1:28 a.m. Tuesday, minutes after the container ship Dali lost power. Crew members aboard the vessel issued a "mayday" warning, which allowed Maryland Transportation Authority police to begin to stop traffic before the crash. Recordings from the transportation authority police radio published by Broadcastify, an open-source audio-streaming service, indicate that officers discussed the workers on the bridge and planned to notify the foreman. But within about 20 seconds, before an officer could drive across the bridge and deliver the news, the structure plummeted into the water.

Jeffrey Pritzker, the executive vice president of Brawner Builders, said in a brief telephone interview that the bridge collapse was "a totally unforeseen event which no one could have predicted."

"The company is upset, families are distressed, this is a terrible tragedy," he said. "I don't know what more I can say."

He said company executives had spent "a great deal of time" Tuesday comforting the workers' families. Pritzker declined to share any more information on their identities but said the men were "good family people."

Marvin Luna, son of Miguel Luna, said he knew his father was on the Key Bridge overnight but did not know it had collapsed until friends called him and said, "The bridge is ... gone."

Marvin Luna then called his father, but no one answered the phone. On Tuesday evening, he was at home in Glen Burnie, Md., desperate for news about his dad.

"We're okay right now because we don't know yet, nothing about my dad," Marvin Luna said. "But we still wait."

Around him, relatives wailed.

As the hours passed Tuesday, with the ship still lodged between pieces of the disintegrated bridge, community members and officials alike grew increasingly anxious for news of victims or survivors. Guatemalan and Salvadoran consulates publicized emergency hotlines on Facebook. Politicians, including President Biden and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, pledged support for families still waiting on news.

One Baltimore City Council member, Phylicia Porter, further heightened anxiety by saying on CNN that a body had been recovered, only to later clarify that she was given wrong information and meant to refer to a bag of fertilizer.

Meanwhile, in a Royal Farms convenience store parking lot near Fort Armistead Park, Jesus Campos, an employee at Brawner Builders, paced, waiting for news about his colleagues.

Campos said in Spanish that working on the bridge is harrowing. Construction crews are continually worried about speeding motorists, and the bridge "moves a lot" because of its design and engineering. Last year, six road construction workers were killed when a motorist barreled into them along a busy highway in Baltimore County.

"This catastrophe has already disproportionately impacted our city's immigrant community, one that often toils in demanding and dangerous jobs to the benefit of all who call Baltimore home," Krish O'Mara Vignarajah, president and CEO of Global Refuge, a Baltimore-based immigrant services nonprofit, said in a statement.

When Jesus Campos arrived at work on March 26, he learned that several of his friends and co-workers went into the water when the Key Bridge collapsed. (Video: Hadley Green/The Washington Post)

Campos said his colleagues had been on a meal break, sitting in or near their vehicles, when the Dali slammed into the bridge.

Campos said he was not working Monday night but was roused from bed about 5 a.m. Tuesday by a colleague. The co-worker told him two people had been rescued from the water but that six others were missing.

"I'm very sad right now," Campos said. "These are my co-workers and friends."

As the sun set Tuesday, officials and residents gathered to pray inside a church in Turner Station, a neighborhood near the foot of where the Key Bridge once stood.

Throughout the hour-long service, clergy and elected officials tried to stay upbeat, discussing the power of community in times of tragedy. But with hope running dry that anyone else might be rescued from the waters, the Rev. Ako Walker of Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Baltimore offered prayers in Spanish, honoring the missing workers.

"Te pedimos por las victimas de este tragedia. Te pedimos por sus familias."

"We pray for the victims of this tragedy. We pray for their families."

Baltimore bridge collapse

How it happened: Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed after being hit by a cargo ship. The container ship lost power shortly before hitting the bridge, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) said. Video shows the bridge collapse in under 40 seconds.

Victims: Divers have recovered the bodies of two construction workers, officials said. They were fathers, husbands and hard workers. A mayday call from the ship prompted first responders to shut down traffic on the four-lane bridge, saving lives.
Scott Dance, Erin Cox, Maria Sacchetti, Peter Hermann and Kelsey Ables contributed to this report.
Economic impact: The collapse of the bridge severed ocean links to the Port of Baltimore, which provides about 20,000 jobs to the area. See how the collapse will disrupt the supply of cars, coal and other goods.

Rebuilding: The bridge, built in the 1970s, will probably take years and cost hundreds of millions of dollars to rebuild, experts said.

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Who are the people presumed dead in the Baltimore bridge collapse?

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The victims are six construction workers who were on the Key Bridge when it collapsed; it's unclear whether others were killed.

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Video of Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse

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Video of Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse

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Baltimore Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse caught on camera: Full video

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