An incident involving a sailing vessel of the Mexican military occurred in New York City, causing significant public attention

Chas Pravdy - 18 May 2025 06:18

The sailing ship "Cuauhtémoc," which is part of the Mexican Navy's training fleet, performed a dangerous maneuver and subsequently collided with the lower part of the Brooklyn Bridge — one of the most recognizable symbols of the metropolis. Fortunately, although the situation resulted in several injuries, a tragedy with a large number of fatalities was avoided. According to official data gathered from local and international sources, the incident took place in the afternoon when the vessel, under the command of the port commander, was conducting training runs in the waters off New York City. Preliminary information indicates that at the time of the collision, there were 277 people on board — primarily trainee sailors and novice captains undergoing practical training under the auspices of the Mexican naval forces. It is important to note that the identification of all passengers is still ongoing, but it is already known that most of them were quickly evacuated from the vessel by rescue personnel. New York City Mayor Eric Adams reported that 19 people were injured as a result of the collision. Four of them sustained serious injuries — considering the situation, local medical services responded promptly to calls, transporting the victims to nearby hospitals for necessary treatment. An official statement from the Mexican fleet confirmed the figures — out of the total number of injured, 22 individuals were affected, with 19 of them transported to city medical facilities for examination and treatment. The collision occurred near the lower part of the Brooklyn Bridge, causing a temporary halt in traffic on one of the city's busiest transportation arteries, which connects the Brooklyn and Manhattan districts. According to the New York City emergency alert system, traffic was suspended for approximately 40 minutes, leading to traffic jams and additional difficulties for residents and tourists. Local authorities, in cooperation with representatives of the Mexican government, are actively investigating all circumstances of the event and working to mitigate its consequences. Currently, all services are preparing an official report and analyzing the causes of the accident to prevent similar incidents in the future. Police and security agencies are conducting an investigation, primarily focusing on why the vessel deviated from its route and what factors contributed to this catastrophe. This incident marks the first such case for New York City in recent decades and has once again raised questions about maritime safety and the seriousness of oversight of training activities in the waters surrounding the metropolis. The local press and the public have already expressed concern and are calling for more stringent supervision of maritime operations, especially when it involves training ships from foreign military forces.

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