HERO OF BRIDGE COLLAPSE HORROR

Countless lives saved after pilot's frantic mayday stopped traffic before impact

- CHRISTOPHER BUCKTIN

THE quick-thinking cargo ship pilot at the centre of the Baltimore bridge tragedy saved many lives by raising the alarm, it emerged yesterday.

Six construction workers are presumed dead after the 95,000tonne Dali slammed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge in the small hours of Tuesday, causing it to crumple into the Patapsco River.

But the toll could have been greater had the pilot not issued an urgent warning when the ship lost power, enabling police to close the bridge 90 seconds before the collision.

Clay Diamond, of the American Pilots Association, said the hero also tried in vain to take evasive action. He added: "These are among the most highly trained mariners in the world."