Captain of container ship that caused Baltimore bridge collapse is Indian, not Ukrainian

CLAIM: The captain of Dali, the container ship that crashed into Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, is Ukrainian.

AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. A Ukrainian man who was listed on a maritime jobs database as captaining Dali for about five months in 2016 is being erroneously blamed for the incident online. The Dali’s captain and crew are Indian, Synergy Marine Group, the company that manages the ship, told The Associated Press. There were two pilots — local specialists who help guide vessels safely in and out of ports — navigating Dali at the time of the collision. Both are U.S. citizens, according to Synergy.

THE FACTS: Following the crash that caused Key Bridge to collapse early Tuesday, social media users shared a screenshot of a webpage they said identified Dali’s captain.

The screenshot, taken on the BalticShipping.com database, shows two seafarers listed as having worked on Dali, including a 52-year-old Ukrainian man who it says applied for the role of master, or captain.