
Feds probing tugboat's possible role in deadly Mexican ship, Brooklyn Bridge crash
NTSB probers Monday said they are investigating a tugboat's possible role in a Mexican ship's crash into the Brooklyn Bridge — while adding they have yet to board the foreign craft, much less talk to its crew.
'Part of our investigation will be to look into procedures' involving tug boats in the harbor, agency investigator Brian Young told reporters at the first National Transportation Safety Board briefing since the Saturday night collision that killed two young Mexican sailors.
3 The Cuauhtemoc BE-01 Mexican Ship that crashed into the Brooklyn Bridge.
G.N.Miller/NYPost
A local tugboat had been helping to guide the Mexican boat out of port before the tall ship headed to Iceland.
Questions have arisen over whether the tug may have too quickly released the ship, when then barreled in reverse into the span.
Young and NTSB board member Michael Graham cautioned that the investigation is preliminary, noting that the agency is still negotiating with the Mexican government to get access to the ship and the cadets who remain on board.
Dozens of the sailors have already left for home.
3 Two people died and 17 were injured during the crash on Saturday.
Paul Martinka
'Still working to get access to the ship,' Graham said at the briefing. 'We haven't yet had a chance to access the engine.
'We haven't had a chance to talk to any of the crew at this point. We are working with our counterparts in the Mexican government to gain access to the ship.'
Young detailed the final minutes before the Cuauhtemoc, a three-mast training ship for Mexican navy cadets, allegedly lost its steering ability and struck the historic span — demonstrating how quickly things turned deadly.
Here is the latest on the Brooklyn Bridge crash involving a Mexican navy tall ship
'At 8:24 p.m., a [voyage data recorder] radio broadcast was sounded requesting assistance from other tugboats in the area of the Brooklyn Bridge,' Young said.
'That was followed by two other requests for assistance, and at 8:24 and 45 seconds, the vessel's mast struck the underside of the Brooklyn Bridge. At 8:27, the vessel came to a stop.'
He said NYPD and FDNY boats were at the scene by 8:30 p.m.
Shocking footage captured the collision and showed cadets clinging to the rigging around the showboat ship's the 147-foot masts.
In addition to the two fatalities, more than 20 others on the ship were injured.
Sources have told The Post that the ship, built in Spain in 1982, was on its way to the Brooklyn waterfront to refuel before setting sale to Iceland — but suffered a mechanical failure that shut down its steering.
3 Two NTSB officials brief the media on Monday afternoon.
Gregory P. Mango
The tragedy cost Mexican cadets America Yamilet Sanchez and Adal Jair Marcos their lives.
Sanchez, a onetime award-winning swimmer from the Veracruz capital of Xalapa, posted a haunting photo from the Big Apple waterfront on Facebook earlier on Saturday.
Marcos, known to friends as 'Tyson' or simply 'Marcos,' had been on board the Cuauhtemoc for nine months and boasted to friends about his travels around the globe.
The two were among 277 crew members on board – 213 men and 64 women, most of them cadets from the Heroica Escuala Naval Militar, the Mexican navy's officer training academy in Veracruz.
The ship was taking part in a training cruise to mark the so-called 'Bicentennial of the Consolidation of the Independence of the Seas,' the 200th anniversary of the Mexican navy expelling Spain from their nation.
It set sail from Cozumel in the Yucatan Peninsula on May 4 on a170-day voyage that was to take the crew to 22 ports in 15 countries.
The ship was also slated to be part of the Class A International Tall Ships parade the is due to parade in the harbor on July 4, 2026, although organizers said Mexican officials had yet to confirm their involvement.
During ceremonies on board last week at the South Street Seaport, dozens of the cadets mounted the masts for a display known as 'manning the yards' – a universal sign of respect traditionally done as a vessel enters a new port.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

4 hours ago
Coast Guard suspends search for plane that crashed off San Diego, killing 6
The Coast Guard suspended the search Tuesday for the wreckage of a small plane that crashed into the ocean shortly after taking off from San Diego, killing all six people aboard. The National Transportation Safety Board said it will continue working to determine why the Cessna 414 crashed Sunday, but it doesn't expect to have any updates on the crash until it publishes its preliminary report about a month from now. With the wreckage still resting under a couple hundred feet of water, the NTSB's investigator isn't even immediately travelling to where the plane crashed about 3 miles (about 5 kilometers) off the coast of Point Loma, a San Diego neighborhood that juts into the Pacific. Authorities have not identified the people who died in the crash. The plane was scheduled to return to Arizona on Sunday — one day after it flew out to San Diego. A natural supplements company called Optimal Health Systems based in Pima, Arizona, said it sold the plane in 2023 to a group of individuals who are part of their small community. Air traffic controllers quickly became concerned about the plane after it failed to climb over 1,000 feet or turn back east after taking off. The pilot reported having trouble climbing and maintaining his heading before repeatedly calling out 'Mayday' before the plane disappeared from radar. This crash came just weeks after a small Cessna crashed into a San Diego neighborhood in foggy weather and killed six people. Those two are just the latest in a string of deadly crashes, mishaps and near misses in aviation this year ever since an airliner collided with an Army helicopter over Washington, D.C., in January, killing 67 people.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
All 6 killed after plane crashes into ocean near San Diego
The Brief All six people aboard a twin-engine Cessna 414 died after the plane crashed into the ocean near San Diego. The pilot reported trouble maintaining altitude and twice turned toward shore before the crash, according to audio and radar data. The FAA and NTSB are investigating, and the victims have not yet been officially identified. Six people were killed after a plane crashed into the ocean 5 miles off the coast near San Diego, authorities said. What we know The twin-engine Cessna 414 crashed at around 12:30 p.m. Sunday, not long after it took off, the Federal Aviation Administration said. The plane was returning to Phoenix one day after flying out from Arizona, according to the flight tracking website Searchers found a debris field later Sunday about 5 miles off the coast of Point Loma, a San Diego neighborhood that juts into the Pacific, U.S. Coast Guard officials. The water in the search area is about 200 feet (61 meters) deep. The pilot told air traffic controllers that he was struggling to maintain his heading and climb as the plane twice turned towards shore before going back out to sea, according to audio posted by and radar data posted by FlightAware. The controller urged the pilot to climb to 4,000 feet after he reported the plane was only about 1,000 feet in the air. The controller directed the pilot to land at a nearby U.S. naval airport on Coronado Island, but the pilot said he was unable to see the airport. A short time later, the pilot repeatedly signaled the "Mayday" distress call before controllers lost radar contact. What we don't know Although the FAA said all six people on board the plane were killed, authorities haven't identified them. Dig deeper The FAA said the plane is owned by vitamin and nutritional supplement maker Optimal Health Systems. But the company based in Pima, Arizona, said in a statement that it sold the plane to a group of private individuals in 2023, meaning the FAA database could be out of date. However, the company's founder, Doug Grant, said in the statement that, "We personally know several of the passengers onboard and our sincerest condolences are offered to those affected by the tragedy, all of whom are incredible members of our small community." The crash comes weeks after a small Cessna crashed into a San Diego neighborhood in foggy weather and killed six people. What's next The National Transportation Safety Board and FAA confirmed they are investigating the crash. Local perspective A man who was out surfing when the plane crashed told NBC 7 in San Diego that he saw the plane come down at an angle, then climb back into the clouds before diving again and crashing into the water. "The next time he came out of the clouds, he went straight into the water. But after I saw this splash, about six seconds later, it was dead silent. I knew that they went in the water, nose first, at a high speed," Tyson Wislofsky said. The Source The Associated Press contributed to this report. The information in this story comes from official statements by the U.S. Coast Guard and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). This story was reported from Los Angeles.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
Coast Guard suspends search for plane that crashed into the ocean off San Diego and killed 6
The Coast Guard suspended the search Tuesday for the wreckage of a small plane that crashed into the ocean shortly after taking off from San Diego, killing all six people aboard. The National Transportation Safety Board said it will continue working to determine why the Cessna 414 crashed Sunday, but it doesn't expect to have any updates on the crash until it publishes its preliminary report about a month from now. With the wreckage still resting under a couple hundred feet of water, the NTSB's investigator isn't even immediately travelling to where the plane crashed about 3 miles (about 5 kilometers) off the coast of Point Loma, a San Diego neighborhood that juts into the Pacific. Authorities have not identified the people who died in the crash. The plane was scheduled to return to Arizona on Sunday — one day after it flew out to San Diego. A natural supplements company called Optimal Health Systems based in Pima, Arizona, said it sold the plane in 2023 to a group of individuals who are part of their small community. Air traffic controllers quickly became concerned about the plane after it failed to climb over 1,000 feet or turn back east after taking off. The pilot reported having trouble climbing and maintaining his heading before repeatedly calling out 'Mayday' before the plane disappeared from radar. This crash came just weeks after a small Cessna crashed into a San Diego neighborhood in foggy weather and killed six people. Those two are just the latest in a string of deadly crashes, mishaps and near misses in aviation this year ever since an airliner collided with an Army helicopter over Washington, D.C., in January, killing 67 people.