New York Mayor Eric Adams says 19 other people were injured in the crash, but the bridge caused great damage.
Mayor Eric Adams said a Mexican Navy sailing ship crashed into the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City, killing at least two people and injuring 19 people.
“At this point, out of the 277 people on board, 19 have been injured, two of whom are in serious condition and two more have died from injuries,” Adams posted on X on Sunday.
The ship rang all three masts after colliding with a New York City landmark late Saturday. However, Adams said the 142-year-old bridge was suffered major damage.
A video posted online shows a ship sailing under a bridge connecting Brooklyn and Manhattan’s New York City Autonomous Borough, as the top of the three masts collide with the iconic structure.
The mast will snap and collapse in part when it hits the deck of the bridge.
The ship, which had its giant green, white and red Mexican flags, drifted towards the edge of the river, with spectators passing it from the coast.
Seafarers can see a lot on rigging the damaged mast.
The cause of the collision is under investigation.
Sydney Niedel and Lily Katz told The Associated Press that they were sitting outside to watch the sunset as they watched the ship slammed the bridge and attacked one of the mast snaps. They looked closely and saw someone hanging on the boat.
“I saw someone hanging. I couldn’t tell if it was blurry or my eyes. There was someone hanging from the harness from above, like they could zoom in on our phone and at least until they could save them,” Katz said.
They said they saw the two of them away from the boat on a stretcher into a small boat.
“I’m deeply saddened”
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said he was “deeply saddened” by the loss of the two crew. “Our solidarity and support go out to their families,” she said in X.
In a post on X, the Mexican Navy said that the academy’s training vessel Cuauhtemoc was damaged in an accident with the Brooklyn Bridge.
It added that personnel and material status is under review by the Navy and local governments providing support.
The Mexican Foreign Office told X that the US ambassador and officials at the Mexican consulate in New York were in contact with local governments to provide assistance to “affected cadets,” but did not mention the injury.
Opened in 1883, Brooklyn Bridge is close to 1,600 feet (490 meters) in the main span supported by two masonry towers.
According to the city’s transport department, more than 100,000 vehicles and an estimated 32,000 pedestrians cross the bridge every day, and its corridors are a major tourist attraction.