Baker Drove Across Key Bridge Just Before Collapse, 'Hysterical' Wife Relieved He's Alive

BALTIMORE, MD — Pasadena man Larry DeSantis said he was one of the last drivers to cross the Francis Scott Key Bridge before it collapsed.

The baker left his first job in Pasadena at 1:18 a.m. on March 26. He crossed the Key Bridge shortly after 1:25 a.m., he said.

The bridge collapsed at 1:29 a.m. after a cargo ship crashed into it. Larry said he clocked into his second job in Dundalk at 1:42 a.m.

"If I had been one minute later, I could've possibly been on that bridge when it went down," Larry told Patch on Wednesday.

The cargo ship Dali left the Port of Baltimore en route to Colombo, Sri Lanka that morning. The Singapore-flagged vessel lost power approaching the bridge. The ship pilot called mayday, giving the Maryland Transportation Authority Police about two minutes to halt bridge traffic. Despite emergency maneuvers, it was too late to stop the 112,000-metric-ton ship.

Larry didn't see the 984-foot vessel barreling toward the bridge at 7 knots or 8 mph. He was focused on the construction workers, who had bright lights illuminating the Interstate 695 roadway. He was also too far away to hear the bridge crumble into the Patapsco River moments later, killing three of those workers and leaving another three presumed dead underneath the sunken debris.

Read all of Patch's Key Bridge collapse coverage here.

The 67-year-old workhorse is familiar with the drive. Larry has whipped up donuts, bread and rolls at Pasadena's Green Valley Marketplace for about 20 years. After his night shift, he pops over to Dundalk's Herman's Bakery, where he's baked cakes for 24 consecutive years.

Larry's first colleague rolled into Herman's around 3 a.m., sighing in relief when she saw him safe. He then watched the video of the tragedy and was in disbelief.

"I've traveled that bridge 17 years, and it's just hard to believe that it's gone," Larry said.

Larry's wife, Michele DeSantis, also works at Green Valley and Herman's. Michele often rides with Larry between the two stores, but she wasn't working at Herman's that day.

Before sunrise, Michele noticed a voicemail on her home phone. A detective had called the house to check on Larry, who she hadn't heard from yet.

Police noticed that Larry's E-ZPass toll tag was scanned right before the bridge was destroyed. Authorities wanted to know if Larry was safe or missing in the chilly waters.

"I was real emotional," the 54-year-old Michele said. "Everything just kept going through my head."

Michele frantically called her husband just before 6 a.m.

"When I finally got a hold of him, I started to cry and I was like 'Oh my, God! You're alive,'" Michele said. "I was hysterical."

For many Baltimoreans, the Key Bridge is symbolic of work and play. Larry is no different.

The Patapsco River was a fishing oasis for Larry, a former boater. He would scour the shipping channel for rockfish, circling the abandoned island of Fort Carroll. Larry remembers looking up at the Key Bridge and marveling at its towering height.

Larry has since viewed the wreckage from nearby Riviera Beach. The site was even more dramatic in person, making him feel for the victims' families.

The emotions are tough to process, but the baker of 51 years keeps his mind going with work.

"It's like my safe place," Larry said. "Everybody copes with things differently, but that's mine."

The disaster won't keep Larry off bridges. He prefers the scenic route, and bridges usually have the best views.

Michele, on the other hand, has always been apprehensive about bridges. She's even more anxious now.

"It's still hard to watch it on TV," Michele said. "It's actually gone. It's like it doesn't feel real."

For now, the couple traverses the Harbor Tunnel and Interstate 895 between jobs. Their roughly 20-minute commute is now 30 minutes to an hour, depending on traffic.

"Traffic is way worse going through the tunnels," Larry said. "It was a quick, straight shot. Now, I gotta go all the way around."

Traffic concerns pale in comparison to the grave danger Larry narrowly escaped.

"At any given time, you never know. You really don't," Larry said.

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