A massive Mexican navy tall ship on a goodwill visit to New York City crashed into the Brooklyn Bridge Saturday evening after losing power, resulting in two deaths and 17 injuries, including two critical cases, The New York Post reported. The vessel's towering masts were sheared off in the collision, creating a chaotic scene of crew members desperately clinging to the rigging.
The training vessel Cuauhtémoc, carrying 277 crew members – primarily cadets – lost power while departing New York Harbor for Iceland around 8:30 p.m. River currents then pushed the ship into the roadway deck of the Brooklyn Bridge, causing the vessel's 147-foot masts to collide with the structure, which has a maximum clearance of 135 feet.
Witness Elijah West described the terrifying scene to The New York Post from Brooklyn Bridge Park: "The boat was coming under the bridge, and there were sailors on top of the boat, the sails hit the bridge and then people were falling off of the boat sails." West added, "It was crazy. We were standing under the bridge and we all started running. Then I saw people hanging from the sails. Police boats came around fast – about five minutes later. And then police guided the boat to the (Manhattan) bridge and started the rescue. It was a shock."
Alarming footage captured by witnesses shows the ship's masts breaking apart as they struck the bridge structure, with numerous crew members dangling precariously from the rigging. Panicked bystanders, who had gathered to watch the vessel's departure, could be heard in videos expressing alarm moments before impact. "She's about to crash," one witness said in footage, "Oh sh*t!"
The incident transformed what was meant to be a celebratory departure into a nightmare for witnesses like Ismari Romero, 43, who told The New York Post she was watching the sendoff from Pier 17. "We were scared – a lot of people were screaming, a lot of people were crying," Romero explained. "We were celebrating and we were saying goodbye and singing. We were all joyful, and they departed. And then they reached the Brooklyn Bridge."
First responders initially received reports of crew members falling into the water, prompting an extensive search, but sources later confirmed to The New York Post that no one had fallen overboard. The damaged vessel was directed to Pier 16, where emergency personnel treated the injured, with those in critical condition transported to nearby hospitals. Officials have not yet released the identities of the two crew members who died.
Retired US Navy Captain Alfred S. McClaren expressed disbelief at the accident when speaking to The New York Post. "I'm dumbfounded," the former nuclear submarine captain said. "It could lose power and drift. So the question is just how fast were they going. But why didn't they use a rudder one way or another? One of the first things I would have done is drop my anchor or anchors."
The Cuauhtémoc, built in Spain in 1982 specifically for training cadets, was visiting New York as part of a promotion for next year's Sail4th tall ship event commemorating America's 250th birthday, according to The New York Post. The vessel was on the third stop of an eight-month global voyage that would have taken the cadets to locations including Jamaica, Iceland, and Portugal.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum expressed her condolences, saying she was "deeply saddened" over the deaths of the crew members. The Mexican navy released a statement acknowledging the accident, noting, "During the sailing maneuver of the Cuauhtémoc sailboat in New York, a mishap occurred with the Brooklyn Bridge, causing damage to the training ship, preventing the continuation of the training cruise for the time being."
The Brooklyn Bridge suffered minor damage in the collision but has since reopened to traffic. Fire officials warned of possible road closures near New Dock Street and Water Street in Brooklyn as emergency operations continued. The damaged ship is expected to be relocated to Pier 36.
This year's cadet class aboard the Cuauhtémoc was the largest in Mexican naval history with 175 trainees. Lt. Sg. Hugo Calvario, the ship's orthopedic surgeon, had told The New York Post earlier in the week, "The classes are getting bigger and bigger. We just keep getting more and more people! We had to leave almost 40% of the crew to take on more cadets."
