Mexican Navy Ship Crashes Into Brooklyn Bridge, Killing Two and Injuring 17

The masts of a Mexican Navy training sailboat toppled after striking the underside of the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday evening.CreditCredit...Dave Sanders for The New York Times

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Mexican Navy Ship Crashes Into Brooklyn Bridge, Killing Two and Injuring 17

Patricia Romero - International
Tell Us NYC

NEW YORK, NY - A Mexican Navy sailing ship, brilliantly illuminated and flying a massive national flag, struck the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday night, shearing off the tops of its masts and resulting in two fatalities and 17 injuries, according to New York City Mayor Eric Adams.

Dramatic footage posted online showed the training vessel Cuauhtémoc approaching the iconic span over the East River, near the Manhattan side. As it sailed beneath the bridge, its towering 147-foot (45-meter) masts proved too tall to pass under the arch, snapping upon impact.

Named after the last Aztec emperor, the Cuauhtémoc is a Mexican Navy training ship built in 1981 in Bilbao, Spain. It had been docked in New York for a public visit co-hosted by the South Street Seaport Museum and was scheduled to depart for Iceland that evening.

The Mexican Navy confirmed via social media that 22 people aboard were injured in the crash. Nineteen were hospitalized, three of them in serious condition. Thankfully, no one fell overboard during the incident.

Mayor Adams later stated on X (formerly Twitter) that two of the 277 individuals aboard the vessel were killed, while two others remained in critical condition as of early Sunday morning.

Videos captured the chaos onshore as stunned bystanders near the South Street Seaport fled in panic. Moments earlier, naval cadets in white uniforms could be seen positioned along the ship’s crossbeams—many still clinging to the rigging after the crash.

A police official suggested mechanical failure may have contributed to the incident, though no further details were provided.

Despite the dramatic collision, a New York City transportation official reported that the historic bridge sustained no significant structural damage. Traffic resumed in both directions following a preliminary safety inspection.

Built in 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge is a key thoroughfare connecting Manhattan and Brooklyn and remains one of the city’s most iconic landmarks.

Mexico's foreign ministry said its ambassador and diplomatic staff were coordinating with local authorities and providing assistance to the affected cadets.