Bodies Located

(TheProudRepublic.com) – After the relentless effort from emergency responders to find victims of the recent tragedy in Baltimore, Maryland officials confirmed that two bodies were recovered from the Baltimore bridge collapse.

While the Francis Scott Key Bridge crumbled after a container ship struck it, authorities initiated a search and rescue for six missing individuals. However, by Tuesday evening, they declared them presumed dead due to factors like water temperature and time passed.

Superintendent of the Maryland Department of State Police, Colonel Roland L. Butler Jr., announced that two victims were found submerged in a red pickup truck around 10 AM by divers.

Butler Jr. stated:

“The Maryland State Police, along with the underwater recovery teams, supported by state, local and federal partners made a tragic finding. Shortly before 10 AM, divers located a red pickup truck submerged in approximately 25 feet of water in the area of the middle span of the bridge. Divers recovered two victims of this tragedy trapped within the vehicle.”

The victims were identified as 35-year-old Alejandro Hernandez Fuente from Mexico and 26-year-old Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera from Guatemala. Likewise, authorities confirmed that their families were notified of their discovery before the press conference.

Butler Jr. continued to state that “based upon the conditions” officials will be moving on from a recovery mode to a “salvage operation,” as divers are no longer able to safely “navigate or operate” around the location where they believe the remaining four bodies are located.

Butler Jr. expressed, “We have exhausted all search efforts in the areas around this wreckage, and based on sonar scans, we firmly believe that the vehicles are encased in superstructure and concrete that we tragically saw it come down.”

He continued, “[A]t this point as this moves to a salvage recovery effort, the Maryland State Police will continue to support the unified command as the salvage assessment phase takes place.”

In addition, authorities noted that the six workers who were filling potholes on the bridge at the time of the incident were all from various countries, which included Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.

It is unclear when the additional missing people will be found by authorities as Butler Jr. emphasized that there is “no definitive timeline” for the operation.