The Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed on Tuesday morning

Tuesday morning, the nearly fifty-year-old Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed instantly after a cargo ship struck one of its support pillars.

After a cargo ship struck one of the Francis Scott Key Bridge's support pillars early on Tuesday morning, the nearly 50-year-old structure in Baltimore instantly fell apart.

A 948-foot container ship, the Dali, struck the Interstate 695 Bridge over the Patapsco River. The Coast Guard was notified of the collision at 1:27 a.m., prompting a response team. The bridge collapsed and fell in the direction of the Patapsco River, with ripple effects taking almost seven seconds to spread throughout the 1.6 miles of bridge.

A portion of the construction was submerged. There is a massive search and rescue operation in progress for at least seven individuals in the river. So far, two have been saved. Photographs taken during the daytime of the debris reveal fragments of the bridge on top of the cargo ship. Not every portion of the continuous through truss bridge is submerged; some sections are still above the water, and some are oriented sideways.

According to Synergy Marine Group, the ship's operating business, all 22 crew members — including the two pilots — have been accounted for, and no injuries have been reported. Sri Lanka was the destination of the container ship Dali. According to the company, the incident's precise cause is still unknown. For the residents, the loss of the bridge is deeply felt.