Construction workers originally from Guatemala and El Salvador are among the six missing after the Key Bridge collapsed in Baltimore, foreign officials and local aid group said.
Eight construction workers who were fixing potholes on the span plunged into the frigid water as the bridge collapsed early Tuesday, officials said. Two were pulled from the water, including one who was hospitalized, according to officials.
Search-and-rescue efforts for the other six individuals were suspended Tuesday evening as operations shifted to a recovery phase, officials said.
The two from Guatemala who are missing are a 26-year-old from San Luis, Petén, and a 35-year-old from Camotán, Chiquimula, the country’s foreign ministry said. Their names were not released.
A container ship rests against wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge as night falls on March 26, 2024, as seen from Sparrows Point, Md.
Matt Rourke/AP
“The Consul General of Guatemala in Maryland was able to establish telephone communication with the brothers of the two missing Guatemalans,” the ministry said in a statement posted in Spanish.
Another missing worker was identified as Miguel Luna, who is originally from El Salvador, according to Court Appointed Special Advocates, a group that works with immigrants.
“Miguel Luna, from El Salvador, left at 6:30 p.m. Monday evening for work and since, has not come home,” the organization said in a press release. “He is a husband, a father of three, and has called Maryland his home for over 19 years.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
