Key Bridge Collapse

[GTR8000]

The folks who jump on the conspiracy theory before the investigation was even begun is just as much of a problem if not more.

Equally distasteful, the individual in this thread who extremely early on in the incident insinuated that it was harbor pilot error with absolutely zero basis to make such a claim. Everyone loves to pretend they're an expert with remarkable perception and insight, when mostly they're clueless and obtuse.

 

[SpectralContent]

7:50pm - BFD moved all Key Bridge traffic off of FG4 and back to A1 Main/A2 Dispatch.

That appears to be the last TG active that was active in the Event playlist, for today atleast.

 

[cg]

Instant gratification folks pointing the fingers without evidence, with most media being some of the worst.
Preliminary investigation indicated no terrorism however, the FBI doesn't pack up and leave. I am sure they have a very good idea what happened but they will gather evidence, document, interview and eventually come to a conclusion as to the cause as best can be determined. Incident from beginning to end (investigation, design & rebuilding and of course litigation) will probably stretch for a decade.

 

[MUTNAV]

You may be correct with the timezone and its impact is minimal for the point I was trying to make.
As of now, there are no indications it was intentional. It's sad to see folks put forth this much energy into "wanting" it to be an act of terrorism.
I don't have inside info, and most of on here probably don't either. But based on what we do have access to, there has been no mention of this being intentional.
The fact the FBI has deemed no threat, and the harbor pilot made a distress call are very strong indications there's no evil intent.

There was very little indication of what the root causes were, but the terrorism possibility was immediately dismissed without any time for an investigation.

Seems like a narrative was being pushed rather than saying that they didn't have an idea yet.


Who was "wanting" it to be an act of terrorism anyway?

Thanks
Joel

 

[MUTNAV]

Maryland Pols are already on TV saying we need to get that channel open and port operating soon.
Lots of heavy gear in this area from Army Corp etc like crane dredges and start cutting up that steel.
They could probably leave flat road beds down there for now but see what they do for that.
Overall just such a sad and crazy day.. What are the odds a ship like that has super power failure probably in the worst spot
of upper Ches Bay area..

I hate to say it but reading on a website a long time ago, it was pointed out that failures tend to happen at the worst possible time, like a persons car battery generally is less likely to fail when driving down the road, but when trying to start an engine on a cold morning.

When lots of changing demands are put on a system, that's when they tend to fail, and I assume what the ship was doing was stressful on it. On the other hand, when a system is neglected for a long time, and it fails hard, lots of other things break in the process.

Thanks
Joel

 

[ThePhotoGuy]

Additional frequencies utilized today...

Channel 16
USCG CG112
USCG CG409
Marine 81A

 

[jparks29]

Should be interesting listening to MSP's response, among others, upon first hearing of the collapse and asking the dispatcher to repeat it.

 

[sfb88]

Something to discuss. Why not require large ships passing under the bridge to be accompanied by tugs?

 

[rustyhodge]

Conspiracies and terrorism are always more fun to talk about than mechanical failures.

 

[G7RUX]

Something to discuss. Why not require large ships passing under the bridge to be accompanied by tugs?

Costs, timing and practicality for a start.
The idea of *escorted* transits isn’t a daft one at all and would likely avoid exactly this sort of incident but the occurrence is very rare although in this case the incident has had major consequences.

If such a system were put in place I suspect that for a good while nothing untoward would happen and the use of those escorts would be ended as an unnecessary expense.

 

[rr60]

I've created a public playlist. Let me know if I need to add any talkgroups to this playlist for coverage.

Key Bridge Collapse Event Coverage

Playlist: Key Bridge Collapse Event Coverage

www.broadcastify.com

And that audio with credits just ran on the National News, WABC, Good Morning America.

 

[KevinC]

How about we keep this radio related. I’m sure you can find conspiracy websites to discuss any perceived coverups or narratives.

 

[ThePhotoGuy]

So far this morning activity has been heard on...


FiRST:
MDEM MJOC
MD Marine Call
MD Tac 1 (Dive Ops)
MD Tac 6
MDTAP Tunnels

Marine Frequencies
Channel 16
Channel 81A
CG 112

Baltimore City:
B6 Event 1

 

[cg]

FEMA daily brief reporting light sheen around vessel, USCG Atlantic Strike Team deployed to assist with potential leaks of 1.8 million gallons of diesel on board. Would be a good time to do some VHF Fed searching as they may be working on other USCG channels.

 

[Hbright]

Question: The “May Day” call has been credited as being instrumental in saving lives. Was that made by someone on the ship on Marine Channel 16? And was someone from MTDA Police monitoring that frequency and able to relay that on their FiRST TG for the officers to shut the bridge?

 

[maus92]

Question: The “May Day” call has been credited as being instrumental in saving lives. Was that made by someone on the ship on Marine Channel 16? And was someone from MTDA Police monitoring that frequency and able to relay that on their FiRST TG for the officers to shut the bridge?

MDTA monitors Marine channels at its comms center at Ft. McHenry. Unclear if the ops people at Key Bridge or DMT do the same. Probably came over 16, but maybe over another port / bridge channel; interesting question.

 

[freqhopping]

Any streaming source for the marine band channels?



Something that was surprising, yet not surprising, was the lack of any mention of the bridge collapse during the dispatch and supplementals. Just a minor detail. The caller was able to convey there were people in the water but not how they ended up there? Or did the call taker not even bother to ask?

Those of us that listen to public safety comms regularly are well aware of the bad info that 911 call centers get, like 5 different locations for a car wreck. Too much to ask of public schools to teach people how to make a competent call to 911 when they're teaching fire safety? They do still teach kids fire safety in schools, right?

 

[tvengr]

Those of us that listen to public safety comms regularly are well aware of the bad info that 911 call centers get, like 5 different locations for a car wreck.

When I first heard the dispatch on Baltimore County Fire, it said that a cruise ship hit the bridge. It was later updated to a cargo ship. I couldn't believe what I heard at first and waited to make sure it was an actual incident and not an exercise before I started this thread. Having worked closely with a TV news operation for many years, accuracy is very important to me. I constantly hear first responders being given incorrect locations. One thing to remember is that most people making those calls are not professional emergency workers and are very upset and confused when thrown into a position like that. I am just thankful they make the calls so that help is on the way.

 

[ezdropper]

MD TAC1 was very busy this morning with dive recovery operations. All I'm going to say it's a hell of a job these guys have to do.

 

[maus92]

MD TAC1 was very busy this morning with dive recovery operations. All I'm going to say it's a hell of a job these guys have to do.

I met some of those guys at an event in OC earlier this month. Impressive gear they have.