Fourth victim recovered in Baltimore's Key Bridge collapse
April 15 (UPI) -- The body of a fourth victim was recovered Monday from the site of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore, according to Mayor Brandon Scott, who said salvage teams located the victim inside of a missing construction vehicle.
"Today Unified Command announced that salvage teams recovered a vehicle with a deceased victim trapped inside while working to clear debris from the channel," Scott said in a statement.
"As we mourn the lives lost and continue the recovery operation, we recognize each missing individual is someone's beloved friend or family member," Maryland State Police Col. Roland L. Butler Jr. told reporters Monday.
At the request of family, authorities did not release the identity of the fourth victim. The body of a third victim, Maynor Yasir Suazo-Sandoval, 38, was recovered earlier this month. The bodies of Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, 35, and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, 26, were recovered shortly after the collapse.
A total of six people died when the bridge collapsed on March 26 after a cargo ship struck a bridge support. Two people remain unaccounted for.
Earlier Monday, the Federal Bureau of Investigation opened an investigation to determine if criminal wrongdoing played a role in the collapse of the Key Bridge.
The new investigation will focus on whether the crew knew when leaving port that something was wrong with the Dali, The Washington Post, ABC News and NBC News reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Federal agents were seen Monday morning boarding the cargo ship after three boats were seen at around 6:30 a.m. EDT pulling up to the port side of the Dali.
"The FBI is present aboard the cargo ship Dali conducting court-authorized law enforcement activity," the agency said Monday morning in a statement.
Federal agents were collecting evidence related to last month's crash.
The 984-foot, Singapore-flagged ship Dali hit the 47-year-old bridge at about 1:30 a.m. EDT on March 26 after the vessel experienced mechanical failures and crashed into a support pillar. The large part of the bridge then collapsed into the Patapsco River within seconds.
Maryland U.S. Attorney Erek Barron noted how his office typically would not confirm or comment on possible investigations.
"However, the public should know, whether it's gun violence, civil rights abuse, financial fraud, or any other threat to public safety or property, we will seek accountability for anyone who may be responsible," according to Barron, a former policy adviser and legal counsel to then-Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware.
This FBI probe is separate from a National Transportation Safety Board investigation which launched in earnest March 27 the day after the crash.
The FBI investigation into the Dali's crash launched Monday, the same day Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott announced that a Philadelphia and New York law firm would be aiding the city in its own legal response to the bridge crash and the ensuing fallout.
"We are continuing to do everything in our power to support everyone impacted here and will continue to recognize the human impact this event has had," the mayor said in a release.
"Part of that work needs to be seeking recourse from those who may potentially be responsible, and with the ship's owner filing a petition to limit its liability mere days after the incident, we need to act equally as quickly to protect the City's interests," he added.