Two bodies recovered from river as investigation, search continue

Investigators were collecting evidence Wednesday from the cargo ship that plowed into Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge and caused its collapse, while in the waters below divers searched through twisted metal for six construction workers who plunged into the harbor. By Wednesday evening, two bodies had been recovered.

The investigation continued as the Baltimore region reeled from the sudden loss of a major transportation link that’s part of the highway loop around the city. The disaster also closed the port that is vital to the city’s shipping industry.

Officials with the National Transportation Safety Board boarded the ship and planned to recover information from its electronics and paperwork, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said.

The agency also is reviewing the voyage data recorder recovered by the Coast Guard and building a timeline of what led to the crash, which federal and state officials have said appeared to be an accident.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore also got a closer look at the aftermath of the collapse. He boarded a Coast Guard ship with federal and local officials to better understand the ship’s path and how the crash happened.

At least eight people went into the water. Two were rescued Tuesday.

The debris complicated the search, according to a Homeland Security memo described to The Associated Press by a law enforcement official. The official was not authorized to discuss details of the document or the investigation and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity.

Moore said the divers faced dangerous conditions.“They are down there in darkness where they can literally see about a foot in front of them. They are trying to navigate mangled metal, and they’re also in a place it is now presumed that people have lost their lives.”

Among the missing were people from Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico, according to diplomats from those countries.