Baltimore bridge collapse: Video shows aftermath of wrecked cargo ship as six workers presumed dead

Footage captured at the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore clearly shows the wreckage after it was rammed by a container vessel. Six workers are now presumed to be dead, after the high-speed 300 metre cargo ship struck one of the bridge's supports.

The six workers who were on the bridge when it collapsed were employed by Brawner Builders, a local contractor that carries out maintenance work on bridges in Maryland state. The company's executive vice-president, Jeffrey Pritzker, told the New York Times: "They were wonderful family people." He said that the six men who are missing had "spouses, children. It's just a very, very bad day."

The ship had lost power and issued a distress call moments before the crash, but was moving too quickly to change course. The Dali vessel collided with the bridge at around midnight on Tuesday, while several vehicles were travelling overhead.

Audio has been released of the first responder call, where police were ordered to 'hold all traffic' from entering the Key Bridge. "There's a ship approaching that's just lost their steering, so until they get that under control, we've got to stop all traffic," an officer says over the police radio. Another identifies that there are construction workers on the bridge, and suggests the foreman be notified and workers be escorted off the bridge.

But this was quickly followed by a panicked call: "The whole bridge just fell down. Start, start, whoever, everybody. The whole bridge just collapsed."