Tragedy Strikes As Mexican Navy Ship Collides With Brooklyn Bridge.
A catastrophic accident unfolded in New York City on Saturday evening when the Mexican Navy training ship Cuauhtémoc crashed into the iconic Brooklyn Bridge, claiming two lives and injuring 19 others. The towering vessel, carrying 277 people, lost power during a manoeuvre, leading to a collision that sent shockwaves through the bustling city.
The Cuauhtémoc, a 297-foot-long (91m) three-masted barque that first sailed in 1982, was on a goodwill tour, having departed Acapulco on 6 April for a 254-day journey to 22 ports across 15 nations, with Iceland as its next destination. The ship, a symbol of Mexican naval pride, is used annually to complete the training of cadets from the Heroic Naval Military School. But on Saturday, at around 8:20 p.m., disaster struck as the vessel’s 158ft (48.2m) masts clipped the underside of the Brooklyn Bridge, which has a clearance of 135ft at its centre.
Eyewitness footage captured the horrifying moment when the ship’s masts snapped, collapsing onto the deck where crew members were stationed. Brooklyn resident Nick Corso described the scene to AFP: “There was lots of screaming, some sailors hanging from the masts. The area just erupted in panic.” Another witness, Kelvin Flores, told the BBC he was at work when he saw the crash. “I came out to find commotion and chaos,” he said. “Fire engines and police were struggling to reach the scene with roads clogged. Seeing the damage was insane—people were carrying stretchers, trying to get the injured out.”
New York City Mayor Eric Adams confirmed the tragedy on X, stating that two crew members had died and two of the 19 injured were in critical condition. The New York Coast Guard reported that all personnel were accounted for, with no one having fallen into the East River. The injured were swiftly transported to hospitals, with emergency services praised for their rapid response.
Authorities attributed the collision to “mechanical issues” and a power cut, which caused the ship to veer uncontrollably towards the bridge’s Brooklyn-side abutment. The National Transportation Safety Board has launched an investigation to determine the precise cause. The Cuauhtémoc was towed to Pier 36 after the incident, its three masts completely destroyed.
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum expressed her grief, saying she was “deeply saddened” by the loss of the two crew members. The Mexican Embassy and Consulate in New York, led by Ambassador Esteban Moctezuma Barragán, are working with local authorities to support the affected cadets and their families.
Remarkably, the 142-year-old Brooklyn Bridge sustained no major structural damage, according to a preliminary inspection by the New York City Department of Transportation. The bridge, a vital artery for over 100,000 vehicles and 32,000 pedestrians daily, was briefly closed but has since reopened to traffic.
The incident sent crowds fleeing from the waterfront, with social media awash with videos of the ship’s masts snapping against the bridge’s underside. The Cuauhtémoc, known as the “Ambassador and Knight of the Seas,” had been docked at Pier 17 since Tuesday, drawing admirers to its free public tours. Its festive lights and Mexican flags had lit up the East River, making the tragedy all the more jarring.
As New Yorkers and the global community mourn the loss, the incident underscores the unpredictability of maritime navigation, even for a vessel as storied as the Cuauhtémoc. The Mexican Navy has vowed transparency as it collaborates with US authorities to review the crash, ensuring the safety of its personnel and the legacy of its training programme endure.
