Francis Scott Key Bridge - The People

Baltimore woke up this morning to what seemed like a surreal gut-punch. Watching the video of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsing into the Patapsco River below was hard to absorb. Thoughts of an early April Fool’s prank immediately entered the mind. Sadly, this wasn’t the case…

I will share Key Bridge memories and my thoughts on the community impact later. But today, I just want to take a few minutes to talk about the victims and the people working behind the scenes.

When the bridge workers started their shift last night, they probably envisioned an uneventful night. The next morning would inevitably usher in a new day as they would head home to their families. Sadly, the night took a tragic turn and several of those workers are still unaccounted for. While we never want to give up hope, optimism is fading fast. The mission is still considered a search and rescue so let’s continue to focus on that. My heart goes out to the families who are, no doubt, being emotionally tortured right now.

As usual, our first responders immediately stepped up and went into action. Rescue divers unselfishly took to the frigid waters to begin the search. I can’t imagine what goes through the minds of these brave individuals. They are thrown into what seems like a hopeless situation. But they forge ahead anyway. 

And the folks who took immediate action to stop traffic seconds before the bridge collapsed need to be commended. There’s no telling how many lives they saved. And kudos to the dispatchers who quickly lined up the appropriate response teams following the collapse.

And I must give credit to Governor Wes Moore. The man has shown the steadiness of a true leader throughout the day. With the collapsed bridge looking in the background, he has given Marylanders hope that things are going to be ok. If pressure builds diamonds, this is his moment.

And if my previous paragraph surprises anyone, fasten your seat belts. I am also commending Mayor Brandon Scott and Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski. These guys were called out in the middle of the night to deal with this unfathomable catastrophe. They have spent the day settling nerves and meeting with the families of the bridge workers. Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg deserves credit as well. He showed up and responded accordingly. Enough said. We can debate politics another day. Times like this call for unity.

There are so many other people working behind the scenes that often don’t get mentioned. The folks who have assembled to provide food for the first responders and rescue workers. The healthcare personnel who are available for standby counseling. The local churches who organized support services. And the overall compassion that the entire community has shown.

The travel and economic impact of this will be dealt with later. For now, let’s continue to help each other through the emotional impact….

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