Over 20 family members of Key Bridge victims secure authorization to come to the U.S.

Twenty-four family members related to the six victims of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse have secured passage to the U.S., according to a news release from two immigrant-focused service organizations.

According to CASA and the Esperanza Center, the latter of which is operated by Catholic Charities of Baltimore, 16 family members are currently in the U.S. and eight more are set to arrive this week. Family members of all six Key Bridge collapse victims have secured visitor visas, according to the news release, though the bodies of two of those victims, Miguel Luna and José Mynor López, have yet to be recovered from the Patapsco River.

The six victims were all construction workers who died when the cargo ship Dali struck the Key Bridge in the early hours of March 26, collapsing it. Divers have been searching for the remains of the victims ever since, and four of those bodies have been recovered.

Family members have already memorialized and celebrated some of their loved ones through vigils, funeral services and a charity soccer tournament.

“Siblings and parents will be joining loved ones in the US — some of whom haven’t seen each other in decades — to provide comfort and, in some cases, bring their loved ones back home for burial,” the news release states.

Additionally, several family members have secured advance parole, which will allow them to reenter the U.S. after they travel to their home countries to return the bodies of their loved ones.

“Losing a loved one is always difficult. Not being able to celebrate them or bury them because they’re in another country is a heartache no one should have to experience,” CASA Executive Director Gustavo Torres said. “While that is a common reality of our broken immigration system, I’m soothed that at least in this instance, families will be together.”