No evidence cargo ship crash into Baltimore bridge was 'well-planned' attack | Fact check

Gabrielle Settles, USA TODAY
·3 min read
3

The claim: Cargo ship crash into Baltimore bridge was 'well-planned' attack

A March 27 Facebook video (direct link, archive link) shows a clip of conservative commentator Steve Bannon interviewing former CBS News journalist Lara Logan.

The two discuss Logan's reporting about the March 26 cargo ship crash that toppled the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. Logan claims she interviewed active duty and retired members of intelligence agencies who said the incident was the result of a "cyberattack."

“This is a brilliant, well-planned strategic attack on one of the most important supply chains in the United States,” she says in the interview.

The post was shared more than 4,000 times in two weeks.

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Our rating: False

There is no evidence the crash was the result of an attack, according to local and federal authorities. The ship lost power and propulsion prior to crashing into the Baltimore bridge.

Data obtained by investigators from ship was 'consistent with power outage'

In the early hours of March 26, the cargo ship Dali, bound for Sri Lanka, left the Seagirt Marine Terminal in Baltimore before it lost power and drifted toward the Francis Scott Key bridge. The ship crashed into one of the bridge’s support towers, causing the bridge to collapse into the water. Six construction workers who were on the bridge at the time of the collapse are missing and presumed dead.

No credible reports support Logan's claim that the bridge collapse was the result of a "strategic attack." Local and federal authorities have said there is no evidence the collision was an intentional act.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Myorkas said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that "There are no indications this was an intentional act."

Likewise, Maryland U.S. Attorney Erek Barron said in a statement there was no evidence the collapse had "any ties to terrorism." The FBI also said in a statement there is no evidence of terrorism.

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The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating the incident but collected data from the Dali that was "consistent with a power outage," according to The New York Times.

The Facebook video at one point shows a screenshot of an article from The Gateway Pundit about Logan's claims, but that article provides no evidence to support her claims.

USA TODAY has debunked an array of claims about the Baltimore incident, including that a cyberattack caused the Dali to crash into the bridge, that Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the collapsed bridge was “racist” and that photos in an Instagram post show the aftermath of the event.

Logan has previously shared misinformation, including the false claim that migrants who cross into the U.S. illegally are given a social security number at the border. She did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

USA TODAY reached out to the Facebook user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: False claim that cargo ship crash was 'planned' attack | Fact check