The Baltimore Sun reported the captain and the crew of the DALI cargo ship that crashed into the Francis Scott Key bridge were taken to a local Walmart to shop before their departure on early Tuesday morning.
The Apostleship of the Sea Director, Andrew Middleton, told the press he took the DALI captain and crew members to shop at a local Walmart over the weekend.
Apostleship of the Sea is a Catholic ministry that helps crew members of international ships run errands, go shopping, and perform other tasks.
Post-9/11 security measures require crew members of international ships to be escorted through port areas by vetted persons.
Middleton told USA Today that as soon as he heard the news that the cargo ship crashed into the Key bridge, he messaged one of the members on WhatsApp and asked if everyone was alright, to which the crew member responded everything was okay.
Dali crew spent weekend in Baltimore before heading back to sea, but ship instead struck Key Bridge https://t.co/eBHSGQo80X
— Sun Latest News (@BaltSunBrk) March 26, 2024
Per USA Today:
The crew of the stranded container ship DALI have reported they are OK and awaiting rescue after the collision that caused a portion of the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore to collapse, according to a seafarers’ chaplain who took them shopping on Sunday.
Andrew Middleton said he took the ship’s captain and a crewman shopping at a nearby Walmart to buy personal items and snacks before their departure.
Since 9/11, international crews have to be escorted by a vetted person through most port areas, and Middleton said it’s fairly common for crews like the DALI’s to request assistance from the Apostleship of the Sea Baltimore Stella Maris International Seafarers’ Center, where he is the director. The group is part of the Catholic Church’s Archdiocese of Baltimore.
Middleton woke up Tuesday morning to the shocking news the ship hit the bridge, and he immediately messaged one of the crewmen via WhatsApp.
“My question to him was, ‘Is everyone ok?’ And the answer was ‘yes sir, everyone is safe,’” Middleton told USA TODAY.
Frantic text after Baltimore bridge collapse confirms crew OK: ‘Yes sir, everyone is safe’ https://t.co/XlC8MmO9cq via @usatoday
— Tabassum Zakaria (@tobyzakaria) March 26, 2024
The latest update on the tragic bridge collapse is that the U.S. Coast Guard stopped searching for the six missing construction contractors working on the Key bridge at the time the bridge collapsed.
Authorities have presumed they are dead.
BREAKING: 6 constitution workers who plunged into the water during Baltimore bridge collapse presumed dead, search is now a recovery mission, Coast Guard says
R.I.P. pic.twitter.com/eJkOrKGijk
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) March 26, 2024
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