NY - Ship carrying 200 people hits the Brooklyn Bridge as search and rescue operation underway. May 17 2025

[sds71]

Multiple people injured after Mexican navy tall ship slams into Brooklyn Bridge in horrifying scene

A massive Mexican navy tall ship making a festive visit to New York slammed into the Brooklyn Bridge late Saturday — toppling its huge masts into the deck in a horrifying scene that left multiple c…

nypost.com

Multiple people injured after Mexican navy tall ship slams into Brooklyn Bridge in horrifying scene

A massive Mexican navy tall ship making a festive visit to New York slammed into the Brooklyn Bridge late Saturday — toppling its huge masts into the deck in a horrifying scene that left multiple c…

nypost.com

 

[Yesiamapirate]

Did they forget it was a TALL ship?! Prayers for anyone that was hurt in this unfortunate collision.

 

[Sillybilly]

How terrifying that must have been too for the motorists on the bridge too, not knowing if the bridge would collapse.

Mexican navy ship Cuauhtémoc hits the Brooklyn Bridge during training exercise

A sailboat struck the base of the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday evening causing multiple injuries, according to the NYPD. The crash, which happened just before 8:30 p.m., occurred when the Mexican navy ship Cuauhtémoc hit the bridge during a sailing maneuver on a training cruise, according to a...

www.nbcnewyork.com

 

[sunspun]

If I'm seeing what's in that photo accurately, they didn't just SLIGHTLY misjudge their sails' ability to pass through safely. Looks like they were off by a lot. Looks like it wasn't even close! There's no way they should have thought there was enough room for this ship to go under the bridge without hitting it. Did they even realize they were passing under the bridge at all?? I can't see what they could say that would explain this massive error.

 

[CrimeDawg123]

It was really pretty though

 

[Odeto BJ]

If the caption on Photo 14 from the NY Post is correct, the ship had been within sight of the BB for at least a few days. Seems they had the time to both develop the concern and make the measurements to find out if the masts were going to clear. OMO

 

[iamshadow21]

If the caption on Photo 14 from the NY Post is correct, the ship had been within sight of the BB for at least a few days. Seems they had the time to both develop the concern and make the measurements to find out if the masts were going to clear. OMO

This article by ABC Australia suggests there may have been a mechanical failure that affected the steering.

Multiple injured after Mexican Navy ship crashes into Brooklyn Bridge

Mexican navy ship, the Cuauhtémoc, has hit the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City during a promotional tour, causing significant damage to the top of the vessel's mast.

www.abc.net.au

 

[whitelilac]

There must be a height of clearance available to every ship that intends to pass under a bridge.
And this vessel's crew, especially the captain, must know the height of the mast. It seems outrageous that this wasn't checked.

eta...a mechanical failure mentioned above...maybe
Like the accident in Baltimore.

 

[ASipowicz]

One theory being discussed is that the ship lost power and was moving backwards. (Warning) at 1:40 he shows a photo of the crew members dangling from the masts. Huge thanks to the first responders who rescued multiple victims from the masts.

 

[LadyL]

video of it happening here:

4.5M views · 16K reactions | BREAKING NEWS IN NYC.. A SHIP HAS HIT THE #BROOKLYNBRIDGE !! The Ship carrying 200 people is a Mexican navy tall ship. The mast hit the bridge causing... | By Mike Masco | Facebook

BREAKING NEWS IN NYC.. A SHIP HAS HIT THE #BROOKLYNBRIDGE !! The Ship carrying 200 people is a Mexican navy tall ship. The mast hit the bridge causing...

www.facebook.com

 

[sds71]

At least two people were killed and about 20 injured when a Mexican Navy training ship carrying 277 passengers struck the underside of the Brooklyn Bridge in New York Saturday night, officials said

https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/brooklyn-bridge-mexican-navy-ship-05-18-25-hnk

 

[Dotta]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1923972101611847923

 

[Chimera]

Sailors hang in the air from navy vessel's mast after ship crashed

As part of a traditional greeting, Mexican sailors stood atop the Cuauhtémoc's 150-foot masts just seconds before the ship struck the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday.

www.dailymail.co.uk

The sailors had been standing atop the Cuauhtémoc's 150-foot masts in the lead up to the ship striking the iconic structure on Saturday

The Navy personnel had been standing on the masts of the Mexican Navy ship as part of a ceremonial greeting and show of respect upon entering a port. as part of a traditional greeting.
The vessel is believed to have experienced some kind of mechanical difficulty that caused the captain to lose control.

From the link : “We had to leave almost 40% of the crew to take on more cadets,” he continued, meaning the trainees have to pick up the slack and take on more responsibilities”
Rbm.
How sad !!!!
A nice comment about the boat from a CKC commenter below the article, about 9 hours ago.
Sounds like they weren't trying to pass under the bridge and they also knew the masts were too high ?
A proud moment turned into tragedy.
Utmost condolences to the families of the deceased.
Hoping the injured recover fully.
Imo.

 

[Chimera]

Curious about tall masts and sails, on a working naval ship.
I thought only reenactment ships used sails ?
Something you don't often see in this modern age !

The videos of the ship are sad as they had all of their lights turned on and it looked amazing.

Found this :
This ‘majestic’ triple-masted Mexican Navy ship is in Melbourne. Here’s how to get onboard
The spectacular three-masted Mexican Navy ship Cuauhtémoc has docked in Port Melbourne’s Station Pier and is open to the public until the end of school holidays.

Named after the last Aztec emperor, the 90-metre barque arrived on Thursday from Fremantle, adorned with multiple giant flags.
As the ship sailed into the port, hundreds of crew members climbed up the masts, and some were almost 50 meters in the air.

Photographer Daniel Tan saw the ship dock, describing its arrival as “beautiful and majestic”.
Tall Ships are largely ceremonial.
They often travel to ports around the world to participate in events (the public can board these ships while docked at port and tour them). They’re mainly ceremonial and public relations vessels, although fully functional ships.
Rbm.

This was imo a terrible mechanical accident and not necessarily negligence This ship has sailed many places and outside of the cadets --who I'd imagine were not the navigators-- was handled by an experienced captain ?
Omo.

 

[Chimera]

Sailors hang in the air from navy vessel's mast after ship crashed

As part of a traditional greeting, Mexican sailors stood atop the Cuauhtémoc's 150-foot masts just seconds before the ship struck the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday.

www.dailymail.co.uk

".... This tradition, known as 'manning the yards,' is a longstanding maritime custom practiced worldwide..."

The sailors aboard the Cuauhtémoc appeared to have been engaged in this time-honored ritual during the harrowing crash.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/this-majestic-triple-masted-mexican-navy-ship-is-in-melbourn

"...Historically, the high vantage point of a ship's masts was used for lookout duties, enabling sailors to detect hazards, approaching ships, or land beyond the horizon."

Admittedly, I was wondering when the news broke why a naval vessel had masts at all & why it was so brightly lit up ?
Am learning some new information in this sad event.

I didn't know ships did this honorary sailing around ports.
More interesting (from the link) is that at the port stops, they allow people to board the ship for a tour of it.
That would be amazing to experience !
(Makes this tragedy more painful.)
Imo.


At least two families will not be seeing their young loved ones again.

 

[Warwick1991]

A number of the world's navies have large sailing vessels used as training ships. Italy's Amerigo Vespucci is one, and the US Coast Guard's Eagle is another. Others include Germany, Norway, Spain, Poland and several South American countries. Most have auxiliary diesels for power. There are Tall Ship events that feature these ships, such as Sail Boston: Sail Boston® 2026 | The Tall Ships Return to Boston

Another tall ships event site features a list of such vessels: Tall Ships | Sail4th 250

It is thought that the ship had some kind of power or rudder failure. 2 dead after Mexican tall ship hits Brooklyn Bridge snapping boat's masts

 

[Dotta]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1924126721923547541

https://twitter.com/x/status/1924078162524115418

 

[imstilla.grandma]

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“You only have a short distance and a relatively short period of time” to react,” he said.

“If you lose power there you’re in big trouble. Think about those elements. You have the wind. The wind is going to push the vessel to some extent. You’re going to have the current. And the tides in the same direction as the current and whatever direction [the vessel] was traveling at before you lose power — you still have the momentum of the direction the vessel was traveling in.

“If you can’t get the anchor down fast enough, it’s the worst possible scenario.”

The collision bore haunting similarities to the March 2024 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.

Mexican ship crashed into Brooklyn Bridge because it lost steering during mechanical failure: sources

A Mexican tall ship slammed into the Brooklyn Bridge because it apparently lost its steering capacity thanks to mechanical failure, sources said — a tragedy eerily reminiscent of last year’s Baltim…

nypost.com

 

[Charlot123]

I understand that the Cuahtemoc was on a world tour. They should have checked all the routes and the bridges i understand. I don't know how they planned to navigate the Hudson River. (There are few cities in the world where, like in St. Petersburg, the bridges draw up at night, for the ships to sail. For the rest, Wikipedia has all heights of all bridges). It is so odd. There is no way it could ever sail under the bridge, high or low tide.

Very sorry for the ones who perished and their families. Speedy recovery to all injured.