Baltimore bridge collapse survivor recounts fighting for his life
CTV
The only person who survived falling from Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge during its catastrophic collapse says he watched in horror as his coworkers, friends and relatives plunged to their deaths.
The only person who survived falling from Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge during its catastrophic collapse says he watched in horror as his coworkers, friends and relatives plunged to their deaths.
In an exclusive interview with NBC News that aired Wednesday evening, Julio Cervantes Suarez described fighting for his life after his truck tumbled into the Patapsco River. He was part of a roadwork crew filling potholes on the bridge when a massive cargo ship lost power and crashed into one of its supporting columns on March 26.
Six people died in the collapse, including Cervantes Suarez's nephew and brother-in-law. An inspector working alongside the crew was able to run to safety and declined medical treatment.
Cervantes Suarez, 37, who hadn't previously spoken publicly about his experience, said the men were sitting in their construction vehicles during a break when the bridge suddenly started crumbling beneath them. A last-minute mayday call from the ship's pilot had allowed nearby police officers to stop traffic to the bridge just moments earlier, but they didn't have enough time to alert the construction workers.
Faced with almost certain death, Cervantes Suarez said he thanked God for his family.
Miraculously, he was able to manually roll down the window of his rapidly sinking truck and climb out into the frigid water.
"That's when I realized what happened," he told NBC News in Spanish. "I looked at the bridge, and it was no longer there."
