What was meant to be a routine visit to New York turned tragic on Saturday when a tall Mexican Navy training ship, the Cuauhtémoc, collided with the iconic Brooklyn Bridge. The accident left two people dead and 19 others injured.
The vessel, carrying 277 crew members, lost power while approaching the bridge. As the captain tried to navigate through the East River, the ship veered toward the Brooklyn side and struck the bridge’s abutment. Video footage captured the harrowing moment when the ship’s towering masts scraped the underside of the bridge, breaking apart and crashing down onto the deck—while some crew members were still on them.
“It was chaos,” said Nick Corso, a Brooklyn resident who saw the crash unfold. “There was a lot of screaming, and I saw sailors dangling from the masts.”
Mayor Eric Adams confirmed the fatalities on social media, adding that two of the injured are in critical condition. Emergency services rushed to the scene, where the wrecked ship stood with its three masts completely snapped off. Thankfully, no one fell into the water, and all personnel were accounted for.
Another witness, Kelvin Flores, was working nearby when he heard the commotion. “There were sirens, people running, fire trucks trying to get through the traffic… it was total chaos,” he told the BBC. “Seeing the damage in person—it was surreal. People were being carried out on stretchers.”
The New York Coast Guard believes a mechanical failure and power outage caused the ship to lose control. Despite the impact, the Brooklyn Bridge itself didn’t sustain major damage and was reopened after an initial inspection.
The Cuauhtémoc, a 297-foot-long ship built in 1982, is a proud symbol of the Mexican Navy. Each year, it embarks on voyages to complete the training of cadets. This year’s journey began in Acapulco on April 6, with the final destination planned to be Iceland.
President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico expressed her sorrow over the loss of two crew members, calling the incident a heartbreaking tragedy.
After the collision, the vessel was towed away from the site, leaving behind shaken witnesses and a somber reminder of how quickly a peaceful moment on the water can turn into a deadly disaster.