Baltimore bridge collapse reverberates from cars to coal

THE 1.6 MILE-LONG bridge collapsed in a matter of seconds. The catastrophic consequences are set to stretch out for weeks.

- NACHA CATTAN, HEATHER PERLBERG BRENDAN MURRAY

As much as 2.5 million tonne of coal, hundreds of cars made by Ford Motor and General Motors, and lumber and gypsum are threatened with disruption after the container ship Dali slammed into and brought down Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in the early hours of Tuesday.

Six people were presumed dead after a search in the Patapsco River, officials said Tuesday evening. The toll could have been worse except for a mayday call from the Singaporeanflagged vessel as it lost power.

US National Transportation Safety Board chair Jennifer Homendy said investigators were able to board the Dali on Tuesday night to inspect the ship's bridge, electronics and documentation.

"We do have the data record, which is essentially the 'black box,"" Homendy said in an interview with CNN. "We've sent that back to our lab to evaluate and begin to develop a timeline of events that led up to the strike on the bridge."

She added that investigators should have information from the vessel's black box later on Wednesday.