The Sailing Ship That Went in the Wrong Direction

"The Cuauhtémo hit the Brooklyn Bridge, killing two crew members. It had intended to sail the other way.

For investigators, one of the immediate questions about the Mexican navy training vessel that hit the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday was why it was going in the wrong direction.

The 297-foot ship, the Cuauhtémoc, edged out of Pier 17 in Manhattan around sunset on Saturday, bound for Iceland. Naval cadets stood in formation on the rigging, its lights shimmering brightly — a proud display after four days in New York.

It was supposed to make a quick refueling stop in Brooklyn, then head out to sea.

Instead, it appeared to go stern first toward the bridge, its masts snapping as they hit the span. Two people were killed and at least 22 others were injured, including 11 who remained in critical condition on Sunday, according to the Mexican Navy. No one on the bridge was hurt, and city officials said the bridge did not sustain serious damage.

Another question has to do with a tugboat that was alongside the Cuauhtémoc in images and videos on social media. The Coast Guard said that foreign vessels like the Cuauhtémoc are required to have a tugboat “escort/assist.” McAllister Towing, a venerable New York tug service, said that one of its vessels had assisted the Cuauhtémoc as it left Pier 17. The company, which said it was cooperating with the authorities, said it would not comment on the accident.

But Senator Charles Schumer of New York said that the Cuauhtémoc “did not use a tugboat’s assistance” and that the tugboat “pictured in widely posted videos was responding after the fact, not assisting before.”

The ship had left Acapulco on an eight-month good-will tour in April. Its itinerary included stops in New York; Reykjavik, Iceland; and ports in Barbados, Cuba, Jamaica, England, Scotland, and Spain. Its captain told the cadets onboard that “this training cruise will be a school without walls.” He said that they would learn from “every maneuver, every dawn at sea and every challenge we face together as one crew.”

The commander of the Mexican navy, Adm. Raymundo Pedro Morales Ángeles, said in a statement on Sunday that cadets who were not injured would continue their training. “We know that every sailing trip involves risks inherent to our seafaring vocation,” Admiral Morales Ángeles said." [1]

 

1. The Sailing Ship That Went in the Wrong Direction: New York Today. Barron, James;New York Times (Online) New York Times Company. May 19, 2025.