What we know about missing people in Baltimore bridge disaster

Six people who fell into the water after a massive container ship collided with Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge are presumed dead and the search for them has been suspended, says the US Coast Guard.

Workers and vehicles were on the bridge when a cargo ship Dali slammed into the bridge around 1.30am ET on Tuesday morning, causing its total collapse.

Two people have so far been rescued from the river — one of whom was in the hospital being treated for injuries. Still, more people are missing.

Here’s what we know about the victims of the Baltimore bridge collapse:

‘Hard-working, humble men’

Little information has been revealed about those who have been rescued, found, and are still missing.

At least six people remain unaccounted for, authorities said on Tuesday.

Members of a construction crew, employed by contractor Brawner Builders, were refilling potholes when the incident occurred, officials said.

Brawner Builders employee Jesus Campos told The Baltimore Banner that the missing individuals are all men in their 30s and 40s.

They all have children and spouses, he said, and they are from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico.

“They are all hard-working, humble men,” Mr Campos told the outlet.

Jenny Luna also told the outlet that her father-in-law Miguel Luna was on the bridge when it crashed. She said she has yet to hear any updates about him.

Construction boss doesn’t think men could have survived

Jeffrey Pritzker, executive vice president of Brawner Builders, told the outlet that he does not believe the workers could have survived the shocking incident.

“We’re presuming that they are not alive, because they were thrown into the bay in an area that’s 50 feet deep, with 46-degree temperature, probably buried under tons of steel,” Mr Pritzker said.

“The company is in mourning and it’s a terrible, unanticipated tragedy.”

Coast Guard suspends search

The Coast Guard told reporters at a Tuesday evening press conference that the search was paused at 7.30pm ET, and would resume on Wednesday morning as a recovery effort with divers being used to search for bodies.

“I’d like to announce tonight that based on the length of time that we’ve gone in this search, the extensive search efforts we’ve put into it, the water temperature, that at this point we do not believe that we’re going to find any of these individuals still alive,” said Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath.