Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland collapsed when a container ship struck it on Tuesday. Six workers vanished and are now presumed dead as search efforts were paused for the night due to serious conditions.

Because the six workers have now been presumed dead, the search-and-rescue efforts for them have now been turned into a recovery mission.

"We do not believe that we're going to find any of these individuals still alive," Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon N. Gilreath said.

According to NBC News, because of how cold the water temperature is, the six workers are believed to have not survived as it has been hours since they went missing. However, Jeffrey Pritzker, executive vice president of Brawner Builders, confirmed that one person had survived.

No names have been released for the six missing workers nor the one that managed to survive. However, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore was holding out hope that they were still alive, along with their loved ones who waited for hours at a Royal Farms convenience store near the entrance of the bridge.

However, when the Coast Guard announced that the six missing workers were presumed dead, it was described as a crushing blow to the loved ones waiting at the nearby convenience store.

Conditions for the recovery efforts have been difficult, and the recovery operations have been temporarily called off for now, with the Maryland governor vowing to use all available resources to find the missing workers.

What Happened When Cargo Ship Collided With Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge?

The cargo ship named Dali was a 984-foot vessel that was traveling at a speed of 8 knots, which is about 9 mph, when it slammed into the bridge in Baltimore, causing it to collapse. This led Gov. Moore to declare a state of emergency while rescue crews used sonar to detect at least five vehicles that fell into the river.

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According to CNN, the Dali diverged from a standard route that large ships leaving the port of Baltimore typically used when going under the bridge. It diverged from that usual path just moments before the crash that caused the bridge collapse.

Meanwhile, Gov. Moore quickly ordered the bridge to be closed immediately. He also praised the quick work of authorities in saving many lives. It was also reported that "radio traffic captured how authorities stopped traffic and worked to clear the bridge seconds before the impact."

The National Transportation Safety Board has now opened an investigation into the crash and bridge collapse, with a team of 24 experts being sent to look into the "nautical operations, vessel operations, safety history records, owners, operators, company policy and any sort of safety management systems or programs" of the vessel that caused the Baltimore bridge collapse.

Two Missing Workers From Guatemala

While the identities of the six presumed dead workers are not revealed yet, the Consulate of Guatemala in Maryland has confirmed that two of them were from the country.

The BBC noted that the six missing workers were working on potholes on the bridge when the ship hit, causing the collapse. It is believed that they fell when the ship hit.

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This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Maryland state of emergency declared after Baltimore bridge collapse - CBS News