Mexican Navy Ship Hits Brooklyn Bridge, Two Dead, 20 Hurt

Tragedy struck on the night of May 17 when the Mexican Navy’s training ship Cuauhtémoc collided with the Brooklyn Bridge in the United States, resulting in two fatalities and injuries to 20 others. The vessel, carrying naval cadets on their final training voyage, reportedly lost power just before the crash.

The incident took place around 8:20 PM and is believed to have been caused by a mechanical failure that rendered the ship uncontrollable. As the ship approached the bridge, its towering 45-meter masts were unable to clear the bridge’s 41.1-meter clearance, leading to a catastrophic impact.

All three masts snapped upon collision, and cadets who had been stationed on them reportedly fell onto the deck below. Authorities have not yet confirmed whether the two fatalities resulted from this fall. Among the 20 injured cadets, 11 remain in critical condition. In total, 277 cadets were aboard the vessel at the time of the accident.

Following a preliminary investigation, the Brooklyn Bridge was reopened to traffic. Law enforcement officials believe that the crash was caused by an unexpected power outage and mechanical malfunction onboard the ship.

Cuauhtémoc, a 91-meter-long vessel with a 12-meter beam, serves as a symbolic capstone to naval training in Mexico. The ship embarks annually on international voyages with graduating cadets. This year’s journey began on April 6 from the Port of Acapulco and included scheduled stops across the Caribbean and Europe, with Iceland intended as the final destination. The ship first entered service in 1982.