Boat Hits Brooklyn Bridge

HTTP404 · May 18, 2025

Wouldn't the current be running the other direction? Out to sea instead of up river?

RiverDave · May 18, 2025

RVRKID said:
From what i read and saw on another video, lost power they are actually floating backwards with a tug trying to chase them down.

There is videos showing that there was a ton of people standing up in the rigging..

I had assumed they had all climbed down before the incident..

Apparently they were still up there

205K views · 1.4K reactions | Sailors hanging from masts of Mexican tall ship that smashed into the Brooklyn Bridge | Harrowing video shows Mexican sailors clinging to the rigging of the tall ship that smashed into the Brooklyn Bridge on May 17. http

Harrowing video shows Mexican sailors clinging to the rigging of the tall ship that smashed into the Brooklyn Bridge on May 17. https://trib.al/GY186H5

www.facebook.com

You gotta be extra special to be up in the top of the masts and literally see a bridge coming and try to ride it out? WTF?

RD

BoatCop · May 18, 2025

HTTP404 said:
Wouldn't the current be running the other direction? Out to sea instead of up river?

Tidal surge. Although it's technically a "river", as it's attached, unhindered, to the ocean, the tides provide an "artificial" river current. Inland as the tides comes in, and seaward as the tides goes out.

In Philly, we always timed our departure to Cape May to coincide with the tide going out. And return on the incoming tide. Our 65' Tug had a top speed at around 12 knots. Put that up against a 8-10 knot current, and it would take us days, instead of hours, to make the trip.

BoatCop · May 18, 2025

RiverDave said:
There is videos showing that there was a ton of people standing up in the rigging..

I had assumed they had all climbed down before the incident..

Apparently they were still up there

205K views · 1.4K reactions | Sailors hanging from masts of Mexican tall ship that smashed into the Brooklyn Bridge | Harrowing video shows Mexican sailors clinging to the rigging of the tall ship that smashed into the Brooklyn Bridge on May 17. http

Harrowing video shows Mexican sailors clinging to the rigging of the tall ship that smashed into the Brooklyn Bridge on May 17. https://trib.al/GY186H5

www.facebook.com

You gotta be extra special to be up in the top of the masts and literally see a bridge coming and try to ride it out? WTF?

RD

Check Post #46.

boatnam2 · May 19, 2025

You can actually see one of the guys standing on the tallest mast when hits and breaks he swings down and hangs on for a second before falling to ship, pretty sure he would be one of the ones who died.

BoatCop · May 19, 2025

boatnam2 said:
You can actually see one of the guys standing on the tallest mast when hits and breaks he swings down and hangs on for a second before falling to ship, pretty sure he would be one of the ones who died.

Reports I have read, say the deaths were from parts of the mast(s) falling onto people on the decks. Those guys tethered up to the rigging were the lucky ones.

boatnam2 · May 19, 2025

BoatCop said:
Reports I have read, say the deaths were from parts of the mast(s) falling onto people on the decks. Those guys tethered up to the rigging were the lucky ones.

Yea this was a video, maybe he just swung lower and didn't fall.

boatnam2 · May 19, 2025

https://x.com/i/status/1923930669853667337

boatnam2 · May 19, 2025

Pretty sure that is a person falling on last hit.

boatnam2 · May 19, 2025

I take that back it wasn't the last mast, one before it.

BoatCop · May 19, 2025

Fun Fact:

The Cuauhtémoc, (Mexico's Tall Ship) and 3 of her sister ships, were built in Spain in 1982, based off the blueprints/plans that built the Horst Wessel (current USCGC Barque Eagle). The ships are pretty much identical.

NicPaus · May 19, 2025

BoatCop said:
Fun Fact:

The Cuauhtémoc, (Mexico's Tall Ship) and 3 of her sister ships, were built in Spain in 1982, based off the blueprints/plans that built the Horst Wessel (current USCGC Barque Eagle). The ships are pretty much identical.

View attachment 1507585

What did they cost to build then? Compared to building the same now?

Mandelon · May 19, 2025

I was in Philadelphia on the 4th of July in 1976. It was amazing!!!

QC22 · May 19, 2025

It does sound now like no power. Crazy combination of Murphy stuff here:

Tide coming in, meeting the river current right at the bridge? Everybody standing on the masts (spars?) for a spectacle/demonstration dealio, mast height just above bridge height. If it can happen, it will happen. I can’t imagine the scene they must’ve all had to deal with.

BoatCop · May 19, 2025

NicPaus said:
What did they cost to build then? Compared to building the same now?

Couldn't tell you. Didn't cost US anything to get the Eagle, (except retro fit).

It'll cost a pretty penny to repair the damage, especially if they do the repairs in New York. I would have it towed to Baltimore and contract with the Coast Guard Yard do the repairs. That's where they do all the Eagle maintenance, so they have experience with that design and model of ship. Either that, or they'll tow it back to Mexico.

ChumpChange · May 19, 2025

BoatCop said:
It'll cost a pretty penny to repair the damage, especially if they do the repairs in New York.

If any repairs are done in New York then the ship would have to be retro fitted to current environmental standards. That means they would have to take all the sails down and make it an electric ship.

stephenkatsea · May 19, 2025

BoatCop said:
Tidal surge. Although it's technically a "river", as it's attached, unhindered, to the ocean, the tides provide an "artificial" river current. Inland as the tides comes in, and seaward as the tides goes out.

In Philly, we always timed our departure to Cape May to coincide with the tide going out. And return on the incoming tide. Our 65' Tug had a top speed at around 12 knots. Put that up against a 8-10 knot current, and it would take us days, instead of hours, to make the trip.

We also timed our arrivals and departures in upper Charleston SC with the tides. And we had 2 main engines and a bow thruster. The Captain of the Mexican vessel will carry this with him for the rest of his life. He didn’t do anything wrong. But, he didn’t do everything right. One look at those conditions and thinking about the “what if’s”, a line already attached to just one tug would have prevented this.

BoatCop · May 19, 2025

stephenkatsea said:
We also timed our arrivals and departures in upper Charleston SC with the tides. And we had 2 main engines and a bow thruster. The Captain of the Mexican vessel will carry this with him for the rest of his life. He didn’t do anything wrong. But, he didn’t do everything right. One look at those conditions and thinking about the “what if’s”, a line already attached to just one tug would have prevented this.

Ditto.

But I was never on a ship that required a tug. (last "big" ship was in '86). I remember my CO, on the 378' Cutter out of Hono, would get on the horn and yell at the tugs to: "Get the fuck away from my ship!" He'd go as far as to have a stool on the bridgewing for the pilot. He told hm to just sit there, and if he saw anything out of the ordinary to speak up, but otherwise, just sit there, STFU and enjoy the ride. Even the Ice Breaker in foreign ports, we'd never need a tug. Now I see them using tugs to help 210's dock.

Tug assist may now be "required" in certain ports for certain sized/outfitted ships. But I never had a CO that needed one.

(I will admit that we once had to use our small boat as a tug to dock our 65' Harbor tug, mooring on the Cohansey River in South Jersey in about 50 MPH winds.)

beerrun · May 19, 2025

Boatcop back in our coast guard days we went out when the call came in now days the call comes in the boat crew musters and they discuss weather its safe for them to go out its a different coast guard today

QC22 · May 19, 2025

Just read that she pulled away from her berth at 8:20PM with a tug, radioed for help from additional tugs at 8:24, hit the bridge 45 seconds later. Was stopped at 8:27. Wow!

NTSB gives first update on Brooklyn Bridge ship crash

Federal investigators looking into the Mexican navy ship that crashed into the Brooklyn Bridge provided an update today.

www.cbsnews.com

CCXHAL · May 19, 2025

Pretty good explanation and pictures here:

Maw · May 20, 2025

DunePilot · May 20, 2025

stephenkatsea · May 20, 2025

CCXHAL said:
Pretty good explanation and pictures here:

This guy does a good job. I’ve seen him cover prior maritime incidents. Unfortunately, the graphic depiction shows the vessel spinning around and leaving the dock bow first. That didn’t happen. Docking Pilot? I believe there would have been a Docking Pilot onboard. The Captain is in charge, but typically the Docking Pilot instructs the tugs. The Captain can over ride his commands. The docking tug would have received instructions from the pilot as approved by the captain. In any case the tug was released, did not have a line on the vessel or remain in physical contact. Pre departure tests - verifying the fwd and rev function of the eng(s), gear box(s), and controls. Steering is also check by conducting hardovers then returning to midships. This is, or should be, standard procedure on any ship. It can become boring and redundant, but it is necessary and it works. Perhaps checks were completed and a mechanical failure occurred after the checks. Wind and current. There is always more ship below the water than there is above. The current is almost always the boss over the wind. If they are from the same directions the forces match and move the vessel accordingly. In this case, stern first into the Brooklyn Bridge.

There was mention of Diplomatic Immunity - I don’t believe required pilotage can be refused via diplomatic immunity.

playdeep · May 20, 2025

old rigger said:
I'm surprised to learn Mexico has a Navy.

Orange Juice · May 21, 2025

Just another Site Six boat launch recovery video. Nothing to see.

BoatCop · May 21, 2025

Orange Juice said:
Just another Site Six boat launch recovery video. Nothing to see.

Those days are gone, since they re-did the Site-Six ramp. Not as steep, better traction 'crete, and a flatter approach.

brgrcru · May 21, 2025

Should of had captain sparrow navigate river

Badchoices03 · May 21, 2025

I am really impressed that for the most part everyone on this post is accepting this as just and accident cause shit happens sometimes....rather than how normal posts like these go where people are claiming it was 100% intentional and should be considered an attack....

BabyRay · May 21, 2025

I just read on X that somebody took over the ship’s systems remotely. Apparently, it was a test of a foreign country’s (China?) system in preparation for war. Instead of wasting missiles, they intend to just cause our ships to crash into each other. It’ll be like watching the Keystone Cops!

Badchoices03 said:
I am really impressed that for the most part everyone on this post is accepting this as just and accident cause shit happens sometimes....rather than how normal posts like these go where people are claiming it was 100% intentional and should be considered an attack....

Does that work?

BoatCop · May 21, 2025

BabyRay said:
I just read on X that somebody took over the ship’s systems remotely. Apparently, it was a test of a foreign country’s (China?) system in preparation for war. Instead of wasting missiles, they intend to just cause our ships to crash into each other. It’ll be like watching the Keystone Cops!

Does that work?

No.

Boat Hits Brooklyn Bridge

New But Seasoned Inmate #2002

In it to win it

Retired And Loving It.

Retired And Loving It.

Well-Known Member

Retired And Loving It.

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Retired And Loving It.

Well-Known Member

Coffee makes me poop.

Landing Loser

Retired And Loving It.

Commercial Banker

Well-Known Member

Retired And Loving It.

Well-Known Member

Landing Loser

Well-Known Member

Dont re Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Retired And Loving It.

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Retired And Loving It.