The body of a fourth victim has been recovered from the wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, authorities said on Monday, nearly three weeks after the bridge’s collapse on March 26 due to a cargo ship strike.
The victim was positively identified by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, according to the Key Bridge Response Unified Command. The victim’s name was not disclosed at the request of the family.
Union Command salvage teams located the victim’s vehicle at the site and notified the Maryland Department of State Police. The department, the FBI, and the Maryland Transportation Authority Police responded and found the deceased victim trapped inside the vehicle.
“As we mourn the lives lost and continue the recovery operation, we recognize each missing individual is someone’s beloved friend or family member,” Colonel Roland L. Butler Jr., superintendent of the Maryland Department of State Police, said in a statement.
“Along with all of our allied law enforcement partners, we pledge to exhaust the physical and technical aspects of their training while deploying every available resource possible,” he added.
The Key Bridge Response Unified Command stated that the victim’s family members were notified about the recovery on Monday.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott in a statement expressed his gratitude to the salvage teams and pledged to “do everything in our power” to support the victims’ families through this “unthinkable tragedy.”
“Our hearts continue to break for the loved ones of these victims. Our entire city remains with them, joining them in mourning and in healing now that one more of their loved ones has been brought home,” he stated.
“For those still waiting, we join them in their hope and grief that they will have the same closure soon,” the mayor added.
A massive cargo ship lost power and struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge in the early hours of March 26, causing it to collapse and hurtling as many as 12 vehicles and 20 people into the water.
Eight construction workers were repairing potholes on the bridge at the time of the crash. Two were rescued while the remaining six went missing. They were presumed dead after the Coast Guard ended its search last month.
The bodies of two workers—identified as Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, 35, and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, 26–were recovered from a submerged pickup truck on March 27. The third victim’s body, Maynor Yasir Suazo-Sandoval, 38, was recovered on April 5.
Col. Butler said the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge “is undoubtedly one of the most challenging tragedies” the department has faced, but that they will not give up on recovering the victims’ remains.
“The FBI is present aboard the cargo ship Dali conducting court-authorized law enforcement activity,” a spokesperson for the FBI’s Baltimore Field Office told The Epoch Times in an email.
The FBI’s statement and other media reports indicate that the agency has begun investigating the incident as criminal in nature. The FBI is reportedly looking into whether or not the crew left the port while aware of major issues with the vessel, according to The Washington Post.
Mr. Scott also announced Monday that the city is now “taking legal steps” to “proactively and aggressively” address the “catastrophic” impact the bridge collapse has had on the city, its residents, families of victims, business owners, longshoremen, and other Port of Baltimore workers.
This includes partnering with legal firms to hold relevant entities accountable as well as “any other potentially liable third parties.”
