good to be back with you for this second hour and we are following two major stories this hour. the urgent search operation at the site of that baltimore bridge collapse. six people still unaccounted for. officials think they were all members of a construction crew sent plunging into the river. we'll get a live report. plus, may day. what we know about the warning sent from a cargo ship just moments before it slammed into the bridge and the power troubles just before the crash.

also developing, the fate of the nation's most widely used abortion bill now in the hands of the supreme court. will the justices roll back more than two decades of guidance? and what activists on both sides of the abortion debate are saying about this landmark case. our nbc news reporters are following all of the latest developments. we begin with that catastrophic bridge collapse in baltimore. antonia hilton is there live. what's the latest on the search there, antonia? >> reporter: hey, chris. well, the priority for officials now is the search and rescue. trying to find the six people who remain unaccounted for but nbc news is learning more about the vessel that struck the beam under the bridge this morning and we've learned that this exact same ship was involved in an earlier collision from july of 2016.

the belgian nautical commission at the time did an investigation but it's not clear what the results were. but it raises questions to the care of the ship, its operations. and certainly as people continue to try to understand what may have happened to its power and to its guidance this morning and what ultimately led to all this, i think this is going to be part of the continued questions raised. but right now, the real focus. you can hear helicopters overhead. there are boats on the water, divers on the water very actively searching for these people. and the president is offering his full support. >> at the direction of my team of heavy and earth to rebuild the bridge as soon as humanly possible. it's my intention that the federal government will pay for the entire cost of reconstructing that bridge. i expect the congress to support by effort. this is going to take some time. and people of baltimore can count own us though to stick with them at every step of the

way until the port is reopened and the bridge is rebuilt. >> reporter: residents i've spoken to say they appreciated the support and they hope the federal government, that congress is able to come through and help fund all this. they're very eager for it to happen as quickly as possible. while finding these six people is the priority at the moment, this is going to be a ripple effect throughout the area. not just because of the activity in the port, in these waters, but also because of all the additional traffic that is going to happen on roads like i-95 here. people's careers and jobs that depend on these pathways. it is a serious communal issue here and their looking for that federal guidance right now as they know people and they know communities that are rushing around in this area to immediately try to support the victims of this case. it is also a broader question now of what happens here, how do we rebuild this infrastructure

and what happens to the community and economy. all the human impacts that can come with that. they're very hopeful the federal government is able to come through in that way and support them in what is going to be a month's, maybe year's long story here. >> thank you. now to the new details about the may day call made by the 948 foot container ship just moments before the crash. tom winter is following that for us. what more do we know, tom? >> it appears that it was that may day call from the ship clearly understanding that they were in a precarious situation that allowed them to cut off traffic to the bridge so this wasn't even worse than it is. and we're now talking about more than six people they're searching for. the video tells a tale here. as somebody who once worked in a business associated with open shipping that is really concerning. we have a timeline of what happened here. we've all seen the video of the

ship hitting the bridge and the bridge collapsing but it's the video of the moments leading up to it that is very telling because at several points in the course of that live stream, you can see the lights on board that ship go out, come back, go out, and come back. so it's very clear that they had a serious power problem. the ship built according to online reports by hyundai heavy industries and powered by man bmw engines. those are very common in the industry. so obviously other shipbuilders and other companies will be paying attention to this to determine what happened. is there some sort of a flaw in the powering system. there's no indication of that at this point, but it's something that's going to be watched. these engines are multistoried. they are complex. they have the ability to take a ship there that can carry 10,000 foot containers. over 100,000 tons here, chris. the ability to move a ship like that, for them to lose power, to be cognizant of it and to call

it in is something that i think has a lot of folks in the industry concerned and hopefully an investigation will come to the bottom as to why this could have happened here and why they hit the bridge. according to marine traffic records, nearly eight notes. and a landmark case that could restrict access to a widely used abortion pill. yamiche, lay out the arguments and the stakes here. >> reporter: this is really the most consequential case related to abortion to come before the supreme court since the supreme court overturned roe v. wade in 2022. the justices heard arguments today from one side, really arguing about whether or not the fda should have the authority to continue to have approval over this abortion pill and should have the ability to expand that access. on the other side, they heard from antiabortion groups through

their lawyer arguing that this, that the moves by the fda here to expand access to this abortion pill, that it really put women's lives at risk. and also put doctors in a situation where they would have to go against their conscious. >> without question, the fda's actions have made taking chemical abortion drugs less safe. today, i argue before the united states supreme court on behalf of doctors and medical associations who have witnessed these harms firsthand. the fda violated federal law in its ability to keep women safe. >> second guessing the scientific data-driven judgments of an independent agency is an extreme position that could inject uncertainty across american life. >> reporter: so there you really heard both sides laying out their arguments. the stakes here are the access to mifepristone. we know based on recent data

that something like six in ten women who have abortions, they use it and do it through medication abortion. that number has gone up since roe v. wade was overturned. the court is deciding whether or not women will have access to it in things like through the mail or in telehealth visits. the fda has made it more accessible the last few year, but there are hundreds of protestors here. >> thank you. today's arguments drew hundreds of people. dasha burns is following that part for us. what did we hear today? >> because of what you heard from yamiche there, this is the most consequential case against the overturning of roe versus wade. there were many people making their voices heard today. take a listen.

>> what do you want? >> freedom! >> when do we want it? >> now! >> i am here to make my voice heard that abortion needs to be accessible for every single person and every single method. >> two, four, six, eight, abortion pills in every state. >> i think abortion is not healthcare. i think it's murder. i'm progressive. i'm a democrat. i'm not a republican. and i am against abortion. i think it is the human being. >> this echoes beyond the supreme court, beyond washington, d.c. this is an issue that since that dobbs decision that overturned roe has become a huge driving force in politics. we saw it have a major impact on the 2022 midterms when it curved what was expected to be a red wave because voters ultimately

ended up making decisions because of this. and now we see this becoming a major factor in this 2024 principle election. this is not over. this story, this case of course, and the broader issue of reproductive rights remains front and center, chris. >> thank you. in 60 seconds, how could one ship take out such a large bridge in seconds? an engineer will weigh in with us as we stand by for an update from the ntsb. it's expected in the next 20 minutes so keep it right here. 0 minutes so keep it right here. alice loves the scent of gain so much, she wished there was a way to make it last longer. say hello to your fairy godmother alice and long-lasting gain scent beads. part of the irresistible scent collection from gain! so this is pickleball? it's basically tennis for babies, but for adults. it should be called wiffle tennis. pickle! yeah, aw! whoo! ♪♪

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baltimore, central to the east coast's entire shipping industry, directly employing more than 15,000 people. the governor of maryland expressing his shock at what happened this morning. >> we know the key bridge. i've been over the bridge countless times. so many of us know the bridge because it is our normal commute so to hear the words that the key bridge has collapsed, it's shocking. and heartbreaking. >> joining me now, baltimore councilwoman, felicia porter. first of all, thank you. we're all watching and feel what the city of baltimore must be going through. what was it like waking up to the news of this collapse? >> it was absolutely heartbreaking. when i received the call early this morning as a local responder myself, i jumped into action. i wanted to make sure one, that the communities i served in south baltimore knew what was going on but also that the

citizens of baltimore knew that local representatives, city, state, and federal representatives were at the helm and they were taking charge of the situation. >> so do you feel confident that what needs to get done right now is being done and that there is cooperation between local, state, and federal officials? >> i'm very confident in that respect. as governor moore mentioned this morning, we have so many agencies here on the ground doing the work, making sure that we have the best public safety response possible for this tragic event. also, i know that the administration has been in contact not only with our federal delegation, but also with the biden-harris administration in order to make sure we have the necessary national and federal resources into baltimore. >> talk about the domino effect

on the economy. of course businesses from car companies to ikea are figuring out their work around. we did an entire conversation about that. that they learned some lessons from covid, but what about the workers at the port? the businesses in the area that depend on local residents? that depend on people who come in on those ships? >> definitely. so we are, we are not only focused on economic recovery after we make sure that we exclusively focus on the lives that have been lost and the lives that have been impacted from this tragic incident. with the scott administration, i'm fully able and capable to advocate on my district's behalf to ensure that not only our workers, they go back to work in a safe and reputable way, but our businesses also have the triage in order to make sure they get the products into our city and also where they're going throughout our world. we know that the port of baltimore is a major economic

driver here in district ten and i know that i have the full support of mayor scott and governor moore in the economic recovery. but right now, we are exclusively focused on those lives that have been lost and impacted. >> i want to play for you some of what our nbc news reporters have been hearing from people where you are in baltimore. >> my parents are on the other side of that bridge. you know, everybody that you know comes back and forth over that bridge even late at night or early in the morning. you're just wondering, making these phone calls, hey, are you okay. >> that bridge means so much to so many people. it connects two significant parts of town. >> the amount of money that we're going to lose in our crabbing, our fishing industry, our taxes are going to go up. the commute's going to get really bad. >> those are reasonable concerns. commute, obviously. concerns about those businesses. what do you say to baltimore

residents who are clearly and understandably shaken by what's happened today? >> i would just say we are here. we are doing the best that we can with the resources and assets that we have at the city, state, and federal level. but i ask for your patience. this is something that unforseen to all levels of government that we are managing in realtime and we understand the economic recovery that's going to come after but we want to make sure that not only do we have a safe place in the port, but also the families that have been affected by the lives that have been lost from this tragic incident have their respective place as well. while i do hear the residents of baltimore, i hear their concerns about economic recovery, my focus is really on the lives that have been lost and i know mayor scott and governor moore, their focus is on the lives that have been lost as well. so that we ensure that ensure

those families that have been impacted, they also get the same amount of respect we're talking about as well. >> thank you. and right now, there is no estimate as to how long it will take to rebuild the bridge and get the port back open. i want to bring in the chair of the department of civil engineering at the college of new jersey. andrew, this ship, 948 feet long. 158 feet wide. three football fields equivalent slammed into a 1.2 mile long bridge. just to give some perspective there lays the ground work for the question i think on everyone's mind. how on earth can so much of a bridge be taken out so fast? >> so, first, thank you for having me. so much of a bridge can be taken out so fast because that ship struck that bridge in its most

vulnerable point. at the support. it probably had a better chance of standing if it hit it in the middle. it was a low probability thing to happen where a ship of that size struck the ship, struck the bridge exactly where it needed to be struck. when we design bridges, we design them to have a very low probability of failure. nothing can ever be designed to be impossible to fail. >> but understanding where this bridge is and understanding the traffic that goes through it, is there something that might have lessened the possibility that even hitting where it did, it might have not collapsed the entire bridge? >> so, the best thing you can do is to keep the ship from actually hitting the bridge. probably the simplest and easiest thing to do to protect a bridge would be to add a fender system that would have been sacrificial. it would have been a structure the ship could have hit and it

would have destroyed that, but saved the bridge. these are required sometimes. it depends on how far the navigable water is away from the pier. >> i'm going to play again the video of that collapse. so as someone who is expert in this, when i watched it, whatever 4:30 this morning and i just recoiled in horror, but what did you see? >> i saw a ship that was tall, tall enough to strike the super structure of the bridge, hit it and just take it out at its most vulnerable spot. there was really nothing there that would have helped it hold on. that was like a perfect hit. >> the maryland governor today said that reconstructing that bridge is going to be a long-term build. that sounds like perhaps an understatement. what does the process of rebuilding look like here and

how much would you expect them to take into consideration what happened this morning as they're looking at that rebuilding? >> so, the speed of the rebuild really depends on how much money you can put into the project and also if there's anything there that can be reused. really that's going to be what the foundations are like under the water. >> do you think that's possible? i hadn't thought of that. >> anything is possible. what they're going to have to do first is clean out the wreckage and see what is left. they'll probably design from what's left to use. building a bridge from the ground up, new foundations and everything will take much longer than if there's something there that can still be used. >> so many questions yet to be answered before we can answer that question of how long it might take. thank you so much. we really appreciate you coming on the program. >> thank you very much for having me. after the break, the nationwide implications of

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mifepristone. written in 1873, the act prevents the mailing of quote obscene materials, and that includes those for abortions. here's how it came up today. >> shouldn't the fda have at least considered the application of 18 usc 1461? >> so i think that the comstock provisions don't fall within fda's lane. >> with respect, the comstock act is relevant, it says drugs should not be mailed through the mail or common carriers. so we think that the plain text of that your honor the pretty clear. >> well, anticipating that access to the drug could be restricted some states began stockpiling it including washington state, which says it has a three or four-year supply. joining me now, the governor of washington state, jay inslee. good to see you. you're also a lawyer.

your state has been ahead of the curve in doing what you can to protect reproductive rights. based on the arguments today, are you worried? >> we should always be worried. you know, i think this is a freedom right. a woman's right of freedom of choice in her own reproductive decision making is under assault. it has been for decades and it will be for decades because the republican party is bound and determined to take away this freedom. and you should always be concerned when you've got somebody attacking this fundamental freedom. i think in the case if you listen to the arguments, you know, if you had a daughter, on a standing basis, the court won't give the relief requested. but if you listen to the judges you just talked about, they are bound and determined to restrict this right and as time goes on in the years to come, this will be a continued assault on this freedom and the comstock act could outlaw this well accepted,

safe, massively and frequently used medicine for women to exercise their right of choice. i think the takeaway from this decision is even if the decision is to throw the case out because the plaintiffs lack standing and that may be what the justices do, that does not put it in the clear because it just allows the anti-choice forces, the republican party, to keep coming for this freedom right and continue to attack the access to this product. so, my mind is you got to know, they're going to be back. >> there's another part of this because the antiabortion activists have criticized states with shield laws. that includes yours, washington, which protect people from criminal and save actions in other states that restrict or criminalize abortions. so i want to play a little bit of that.

>> the fact remains that just because you are sitting in california does not mean that you are not violating the laws of florida, texas, and 30 other states. so i think they have a false sense of security about this. >> do you think people in your state have a false sense of security? >> well, in some sense, it's kind of one of my messages today. you shouldn't have any sense of security when you have an entire political party bound and determined to take away the right of choice from american women. so you've got to be alert. that's why our state have been very aggressive in passing our shield laws so florida and texas and idahos of world can't come into our state and try to dick dictate what takes place in our state. we have protected this right for women who do reside in other places. we've had women come from idaho and other states. the number of people we have served from out of state went up about 46% after these decisions

and we intend to do everything we can for american women in this regard. but again, we have to be observant, aggressive, and protective of this freedom right or it will be lost. this is a multidecadal effort. it's gone on for decades and will continue and the presidential election will be critical in this regard. we're going to have a candidate running for president who's very protective of freedom rights for women and a candidate who has expressed a willingness to take away those rights. so this is going to be on the ballot this year. >> so i don't think there's any doubt that we have seen certainly post dobbs the impact at the voting booth of these restrictions. having said that, do you think that the messaging on the part of the biden administration and democratic candidates you know has been strong enough, focused enough? >> well, i think that the president has been very clear and direct and strong. the vice president was the first to go to minnesota to visit with

the services that are provided. that's a strong message. i don't know how they could be stronger, but as we get closer to the election, i think people will start to focus. this is a real thing in real women's lives. this is not some sort of ideological tempest in the teapot. this is the most intimate decision that maybe people can make. and one party, the republican party, wants to use government to force down womens' throats their decision of mostly men deciding what women should do in their lives. i'm in a party that wants to protect womens' autonomy. tim walsh, governor of minnesota, i think said it best. said it's time for a bunch of old men to stop telling women what to do. i think that is the perfect summation of what this issue is about and no matter what happens on this issue today in the supreme court, they're going to

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we are now standing by for a

news conference. you see the podium there. the ntsb is going to be talking about that bridge collapse in baltimore that was caused by a cargo ship collision. at this point, crews are still searching for the six people unaccounted for. two others were rescued from the water early this morning and we will go live to this news conference as soon as it starts. rfk jr.'s third party bid and its potential threat to joe biden's campaign is about to take a major step forward. next hour, he will announce his running mate and sources tell nbc news his number two will be nicole shanahan, an attorney and philanthropist whose wealth could help him get on the ballot in all 50 states. she also helped in the production of the infamous super bowl ad that invoked his uncle and resulted in kennedy apologizing to his famous family for the pain it caused them. vaughn hillyard is covering the event in oakland.

jonathan alter knows the kennedy family. vaughn, tell us about nicole shanahan and why she was chosen. >> reporter: this was a selection process that took part of the course of months. he has been looking for a vp pick. he had to make one quickly in order to qualify for the ballot. he floated aaron rodgers, the quarterback of the new york jets. tulsi gabbard, the former congresswoman. >> sorry, i have to interrupt because the press conference is beginning. >> m-u-i-s-e. first time is m-a-r-c-e-l. our investigator in charge for this investigation but just given that we've arrived on scene today, it's very early. i've asked that he remain at the command post to continue what he is doing so that i can brief you

on what we're doing so far. also with me is one of our newest board members. this is alvin brown. this is his training launch. so the ntsb arrived on scene at 6:00 a.m. to investigate an accident involving a singapore registered vessel with the name dali, d-a-l-i, which made contact with the francis scott key bridge in baltimore, maryland at around 1:30 a.m. this morning. the vessel is 985 feet long. it's a 95,000 gross ton container ship. i've seen information about crew members on board. we still need to verify the numbers of crew on board and their status.

under our memorandum of understanding with the coast guard, the ntsb is leading the investigation. the coast guard will support this investigation. our memorandum of understanding for example provides for when an accident involves another mode of transportation and other factors. the ntsb will lead that investigation. now i want to thank the u.s. coast guard. we have a very cooperative relationship with the u.s. coast guard. i am particularly, particularly want to thank deputy commandant for operations, vice admiral gautier. admiral gillbreath and captain o'connell, the sector commander. before i go on, on behalf of the

ntsb, i want to extend our deepest sympathies to those who have been affected by this significant event. the ntsb as i mentioned does many significant transportation events. not just aviation. we do accidents and incidents in marine safety as well and of course with bridges and other highway infrastructure and for this, there were many that were affected by this collapse and our deepest sympathies go out to families, loved ones, and others who have been affected. i'm going to get questions on fatalities and injuries, which i'm not going to answer. that is not something the ntsb answers. i will refer you to local authorities on all of that information. what i can tell you is a search and rescue is still underway.

so we are very hopeful and again, our thoughts are with the families and their loved ones. again, we got here at 6:00 a.m. and we are standing back to allow the coast guard and search and rescue to continue their search and rescue operations while we gather information from the command post. there is a lot of information that we can begin to collect. we have a team of 24 on scene including member brown and me. the team of experts include experts in nautical operations and what they're going to look at and begin to collect is information on vessel operations. safety history. safety record. they'll look at the owner. they'll look at the operator and they'll look at the operations

this day, today. they will also look at company policy, any sort of safety management system or safety management program will be looked at by them and our human performance team as well. we have a human performance expert here. we have an engineering team. we have survival factors and then we have a team here that is getting the reporters. we also have a highway safety team. our team out of the office of highway safety includes structural engineers, bridge experts who will be here and are continuing to come in. we have a few here and one or two others are coming in in the next few hours. we also have our family assistance team on site. and our family assistance team works with those that were affected by a particular event.

families, friends, and other loved ones. they will help them get in touch with the resources they need while also providing them with the information that they need as we move forward with our investigation. this is a team effort. there are a lot of entities right now in the command post. all focused on search and rescue as they should be. but i do want to in particular thank the coast guard, the maryland transportation authority police, the federal bureau of investigations, the baltimore fire and rescue, and the maryland state police. i also know that there are others on scene. i'm sure i have missed. for example, army corp. of engineers is here. a great deal of expertise and all focused on what is very

important, which is the people first. i have been in contact with my counterpart in singapore. director chong is the director of transport, the transport safety investigations board. the ntsb, the ntsb maintains relationships with our counterparts in other countries often and stay in close communication so the director and i have been in communication many times before on safety. so it was a good conversation. he is sending some personnel here tomorrow. also personnel will be arriving from the maritime and port authority of singapore, who has the focus of being the regulator in singapore. now, it's not a lot of information that i can share at this time and there's a lot of information that seems to be circulating.

the ntsb doesn't speculate. we provide facts. so there isn't a lot we can share right now because the focus has been on the people. however, if you know me, i like to provide information as we can when we're able to verify those facts and be open about that. transparency is one of our mandates. one of our core values. so please monitor ntsb.gov and x where we will post when we're having another media briefing. we do have an organizational meeting tonight at 5:00 which i mentioned to determine where we want to go next on the investigation but there's a lot of information we need to gather between now and then in the days and weeks that follow. with that, i am going to take questions. i will call on you. please state your name and your

affiliation. we'll start with tom and then go over here. >> what type of report on the ship and what information might they provide? >> yeah, at this time, i will have more information about the recorders tomorrow. we chose not to board the vessel today to allow some time for the search and recovery, which we did not want to interfere with. that is the first and foremost. we have some information but we need to verify that information first before i provide that information. before i verify it. so we will have that information tomorrow or maybe later tonight if you want to check with me. yes. >> how long will the search go

on? >> the search is a question on how long the search will go on today. the ntsb is not in charge of the search and rescue operation. that is the u.s. coast guard so i would refer you to the coast guard for that information. yeah. there's a question on the timeline. again, i know this is all information you're looking for. the information we get which often happens in a large event where there are a lot of entities is there is conflicting information. the ntsb focuses on the facts so we will figure that out and be

able to provide that information in the coming days. today is far too early. nothing on the timeline so far. how critical voyage data recorder be to investigating this. it will be critical. it's a critical piece of our investigation, which is why we have a recorders team here. >> have you been able to investigate and figure out why this ship was -- >> again, the question is on dropping anchor and whether they did or did not and the timing on that. again, that will be part of our investigation and part of our timeline. i can provide you more information on that in the coming days but not today. >> just wanted to check, do you have any information on the crew that was on board, the nationality? >> the question is who was on

board the vessel. and nationalities. again, i've heard conflicting information on that as well. we will have to get back to you on that. yes. >> do you have any reason to believe there were major deficiencies? what are you learning from previous -- >> the question is were there any deficiencies on the vessel before it sailed and will we be looking at any safety information. that is part of our investigation where we look in depth at safety information. anything that may have occurred prior to this. any sort of safety history with respect to the vessel. any sort of maintenance that was done to a vessel or component on the ship. we will look at all of that. but it's much too early for all of that. >> talk about the private sector

you're working with. >> the question is who are we working with from the private sector folks. certainly we're going to, we're working with the owner operators, which are two different entities for this vessel. we will be working with the pilot association and we will have a number of federal, state, and local partners as party to the investigation. we are going to designate those tonight at the organizational briefing and i'll have more information on that tomorrow. >> given obviously the search and rescue effort is the main focus right now handled by the u.s. coast guard, but the key bridge being such a major thoroughfare for the city and our commerce and our entire country. not to mention waterways being shutdown. is there any sense of urgency to get this cleaned up faster or what exactly is the priority? >> there's a question on what's the priority beyond the search

and rescue. we don't, you know, certainly investigations are a priority. certainly environmental considerations are a priority. and so is traffic and getting you know, cargo vessels in and out of the port of baltimore. it's not the ntsb's priority. we have a number of organizations including the department of transportation, maryland department of transportation, the governor that's doing a lot of work on that. right now, it's about people. it's about families and addressing the needs of those that were impacted. that's the focus. i don't think anybody in that room right now at the command post is thinking about what are the next steps to get things cleaned up. they're working to figure out who was impacted, if anyone was impacted, and how do we address that because that is and should

be the priority always. >> you talked a little bit about the families and the rescue effort that's taking place. have we confirmed there were any more than just the six construction workers that were on the bridge itself? were there any more, other cars, other drivers on the bridge? >> there's a lot of information, the question is on have we been able to confirmation on the number of cars on the bridge, the number of workers on the bridge. there are a lot of numbers that we've heard back and forth. we need to verify that. the search team is doing that now. that's not for the ntsb. that is for the local authorities. maryland state police. and the maryland transportation authority as well as their federal partners through the coast guard to be able to verify that information. >> could be other victims than

just the six. >> there are, nobody is going by a number. they are just looking and they're searching. that's what's important. yeah. >> any kind of structural -- >> yeah, the structure of the bridge. there's some questions about the structure of the bridge. protective structure around the bridge or the piers to make sure there isn't a collapse. we are aware of what a structure should have. part of our investigation will be what, how was this bridge constructed. it will look at the structure itself. should there be any sort of safety improvements. all that will be part of our investigation. we go very broad in our

investigation. >> the question is has the bridge ever been flagged for any safety deficiency or security deficiency. that is information that will take time to dig through. i will just point to our recent investigation of the fern hollow bridge collapse which took almost two years to get information on inspections and what was and was not done after that those inspections and whether there were records or not records maintained. that's specific to fern hollow bridge. but it is very cumbersome process. a very meticulous process where they have to dig through a lot of information. so it will not be something we will verify well on scene.

the question is on the reported power failure. we've heard the reports. we have been made aware of those same reports about there being a power outage. i've also seen statements, media releases from singapore as well. it's something that we take in but something that we have to verify through our investigation that that was what was part of the contributing cause here. so too early to tell. yep. >> can you confirm if the construction workers on the bridge were -- >> can i confirm whether the construction workers on the bridge were employed by brown. brawner builders incorporated. that is the information we have. brawner builders incorporated.

of course sometimes they use subcontractors though we don't have any information yet on subcontractors but we have information on the company itself. is there any information on the anybody that is unaccounted for and whether they were able to verify with the company. this is something that the federal officials, the fbi along with the coast guard will verify. not the ntsb. >> one of the people -- and that that was the person that was recommending one. >> the question is about a state inspector. i don't have information on the state inspector at this point.

we are very focused on getting our investigative groups up and running again let the search and rescue team do what they need to do to focus on the people and then we are gathering information from the owner of the ship, of the vessel, and the operator and others for this time. again, that was my last question. for further information, and i know it's not a lot of information for the first day, but we just got here and really, the focus is on the families and the people. that is our main focus. that is everyone's main focus right now. the rest can wait. so please monitor ntsb.gov and our twitter feed for the next briefing. thank you. >> that is the chair of the national transportation safety board, jennifer homendy.

not a lot of questions she can answer and not surprising given we're 13 and a half hours into this tragedy and perhaps the first five hours plus of it they were in complete darkness because this all happened at 1:30 in the morning before dawn. but we did get a couple of really critical pieces of information. that the u.s. coast guard is leading the search for six people still missing. are there more, not 100% sure. they're looking for whoever could possibly be found there. but again, that's not part of the ntsb's job here. that is the coast guard. and everyone we've had on over the last couple of hours has said that right now, the focus is on those folks and on their families. second part though and this is critically important and tom costello, my nbc colleague asked this question. there are recorders on board the vessel. voice data recorders. she said that would provide significant information. that's a very important piece of the puzzle. they have not gone on to that

vessel yet. 985 feet long. a 95,000 gross tons that went into that bridge this morning and collapsed it in a matter of seconds. that's going to do it for us this hour. make sure to join us for chris jansing reports every weekday, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. eastern. very busy day. a lot of breaking news. our coverage will continue with katy tur reports right now. eporw good to be with you. i'm katy tur. at least six people with still missing according to officials. although the ntsb won't say an exact number, they do say though that search and rescue is ongoing according to the news conference we were watching a moment ago. and the wreckage of baltimore's francis scott key bridge will not be touched while those search and rescue efforts are ongoing. the bridge collapsed last niegs around