Mexican Navy ship crashes into Brooklyn Bridge, leaving two dead and 19 injured

On May 17, a tragic maritime accident unfolded as the Mexican Navy’s training vessel Cuauhtémoc struck New York City’s iconic Brooklyn Bridge, resulting in the deaths of two sailors and injuries to at least 19 others.

According to the New York Police Department, the Cuauhtémoc, carrying 277 people on board, lost power while navigating the East River. The ship’s towering masts collided with the underside of the Brooklyn Bridge, snapping upon impact and collapsing onto the deck, where crew members had been stationed, Caliber.Az reports, citing BBC.

Footage from the scene shows the vessel’s masts clipping the structure as it attempted to pass beneath. Eyewitnesses described a moment of chaos and horror. “There was lots of screaming, some sailors hanging from the masts,” Brooklyn resident Nick Corso told AFP.

Authorities confirmed all crew members were accounted for and no one fell into the river. The New York Coast Guard reported that all three of the ship’s masts were lost in the crash.

Mayor Eric Adams confirmed the fatalities in a post on X, adding that two of the injured remain in critical condition.

Despite the severity of the collision, the Brooklyn Bridge itself sustained no major structural damage and was reopened following a preliminary inspection by city engineers.

Initial investigations suggest mechanical failure and a power outage caused the vessel to drift uncontrollably toward the bridge's Brooklyn abutment.

Witness Kelvin Flores, who was nearby at the time, described the aftermath as “commotion and chaos,” with emergency responders struggling to reach the scene due to traffic congestion. “Just seeing the actual damage was insane,” he told the BBC. “People carrying stretchers... they were trying to get the injured out.”

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum expressed her condolences, saying she was “deeply saddened” by the loss of life.

The Cuauhtémoc, a 297-foot-long and 40-foot-wide barque-rigged sailing ship, was launched in 1982. It serves as a mobile training platform for naval cadets, embarking on annual voyages after the conclusion of military school classes. This year, the vessel departed Acapulco on April 6 and was en route to Iceland before the fatal incident.

The ship's mast height measured 158 feet (48.2 meters), while the Brooklyn Bridge offers a vertical clearance of just 135 feet at its centre, according to the city’s transport department.

The Cuauhtémoc has since been towed from the crash site. A full investigation is now underway.

By Khagan Isayev