International

The Baltimore Fallen Bridge: 2,632 meters in length immortalized in the series ‘The Wire’

The Francis Scott Key Bridge, which collapsed on Tuesday after a freighter crashed into it, is the largest in Baltimore, the capital of the state of Maryland: it has a length of 2,632 meters and more than 11 million vehicles travel through it a year.

This bridge was immortalized by “The Wire”, the successful American television series set in Baltimore about judicial telephone interventions against a police group and in which many of its characters are based on real people from the city.

Named in honor of the poet Francis Scott Key, author of the lyrics of the American anthem, the construction of the current bridge began in 1972 and was inaugurated on March 23, 1977.

The structure crosses the lower part of the Patapsco River between Hawkins Point and Sollers Point and runs through it by the I-695 motorway (Baltimore Beltway).

The bridge that collapsed this Tuesday is, according to the organization Historic Sites, heir to the one built between 1833 and 1843 with stone pillars, demolished in 1915, as well as the one that replaced it, a concrete arch inaugurated in 1923.

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He already had the name of Francis Scott Key because the artist lived in an area near the beginning of the 19th century. Originally the bridge was known as ‘Outer Harbor Crossing’.

Every summer, in addition, the U.S. Coast Guard deploys the commemorative buoy of the poet Francis Scott Key on the Patapsco River, in the vicinity of the bridge.

The star-covered buoy marks the approximate location where Francis Scott Key wrote the national anthem, ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’, while trying to facilitate the release of a prisoner held on a British ship during the bombing of Fort McHenry in 1814.

The piles of the bridge and other components form an underwater reef that attracts fish, such as striped sea bass or perch, so the place is appreciated by sports fishing enthusiasts.

The area also attracts recreational boats, and tourist boats and local cruises offer travel routes near the bridge.

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Near the western end of the bridge, in Fort Armistead Park, there are ramps for launching boats, a fishing dock and views of the bridge.

Baltimore, an important seaport even before the American Revolution settled in Chesapeake Bay, is the most populous city in the state of Maryland.

It has just over 600,000 inhabitants in the urban center and 2,700,000 in its metropolitan area.

International

Zelenski urges global action after russian ballistic missile strike

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenski called on the international community Thursday to “respond” to Russia’s ballistic missile strike on Ukraine, which he said has heightened the “escalation and brutality” of the conflict.

“The world must react. So far, there has been no strong response,” Zelenski lamented in a social media statement.

“We must act. We must pressure. We must push Russia towards real peace, which is only achievable through strength,” he added.

Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed Thursday that Russia had launched a new type of hypersonic ballistic missile against Ukraine in its “non-nuclear configuration.”

International

Elon Musk plans sweeping cuts to U.S. bureaucracy and spending

Elon Musk has pledged massive cuts to government programs, subsidies, and bureaucracy in his anticipated role as a “State Efficiency” leader, according to an article published Wednesday in The Wall Street Journal.

The billionaire entrepreneur plans to target hundreds of billions of dollars in federal spending, including funds for public broadcasting and Planned Parenthood. Musk called government bureaucracy an “existential threat” to American democracy.

Teaming up with fellow businessman and Trump ally Vivek Ramaswamy, Musk aims to streamline federal regulations and implement significant administrative and cost reductions.

“We are entrepreneurs, not politicians. We will serve as external volunteers, not federal officials or employees,” Musk and Ramaswamy stated in the article.

International

Putin warns of escalation, suggests strikes on western weapon suppliers

Russian President Vladimir Putin declared that the conflict in Ukraine is taking on the characteristics of a “global war,” warning that Russia might target Western nations supplying Ukraine with weapons used in attacks on Russian territory.

These remarks come after a day of heightened tensions, during which Russia launched a state-of-the-art medium-range missile designed to carry a nuclear warhead. However, this particular missile was loaded with conventional explosives.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the missile strike, calling it the action of a “deranged neighbor” using Ukraine as a “military testing ground.”

Earlier, Ukraine accused Russia of attacking the central-eastern city of Dnipro with a missile exhibiting “all the characteristics” of an intercontinental missile, an unprecedented development in the ongoing conflict.