Memorial Grows for 2 Mexican Cadets Killed After Tall Ship Collides with Brooklyn Bridge

“Rest in Peace Proud Mexican Cadets.”

That’s one of the signs, scrawled in Spanish on a Mexican flag near the site where two Mexican cadets were killed and 19 others injured when a Tall Ship of the Mexican Navy struck the underside of the Brooklyn Bridge on May 17, snapping the training vessel’s three masts as it drifted backward after appearing to lose power.

“At this time, of the 277 on board, 19 sustained injuries, 2 of which remain in critical condition and 2 more have sadly passed away from their injuries,” Mayor Eric Adams wrote on X that night. By Monday, May 19, the Mexican government had said at least nine victims were in critical condition in addition to the two cadets who died.

The two Mexican cadet victims were identified as 20-year-old América Yamilet Sánchez from Xalapa, Veracruz, and 23-year-old Adal Jair Maldonado Marcos from Salina Cruz, Oaxaca.

Underneath the Brooklyn Bridge, along the pathway adjacent to the Emily Roebling Park, a makeshift memorial was taking place. On a windy Monday morning, dozens of tourists and sightseers paused to take photos, gaze upon the water and the bridge, and to read the various inscriptions written on six pieces of poster board affixed to a security fence.

Stepping closer to the temporary fence reveals why it’s there: because the regular fence was bashed by the crashing Mexican ship. Among the items present at the memorial were two heart-bearing stuffed white bears, a dozen flower bouquets, and candles.

Looking north upriver, past the Manhattan Bridge, the ship and its horrifying broken masts lay docked at Pier 36. A bit upriver from there idles a small NYPD boat, its blue light flashing, there to protect the damaged vessel as much as to ward off any waterborne relic seekers. The ship is already being scrutinized by the National Transportation Safety Board, which flew in on May 18.

At Jane’s Carousel in Brooklyn Bridge Park, seemingly within grasping distance of the damaged Mexican ship, hundreds of children, their parents, and caretakers squealed and patiently waited their turn on the merry-go-round, happily oblivious to the memorial just steps away.

The collision happened shortly before 8:30pm on May 17. The Mexican Navy said that the academy training vessel Cuauhtemoc had set sail from Acapulco, Mexico, on the Pacific coast and was scheduled to sail with its crew of 277 cadets to 22 ports in 15 nations on a training and goodwill cultural tour. At the time of the collision, the Tall Ship was supposed to be sailing south as it started the next leg of its journey to Reykjavik, Iceland, with a refueling stop in Brooklyn. It had arrived in New York City on Tuesday, May 14, and had been holding tours from a berth at Pier 17 at the South Street Seaport. After days of letting visitors tour the vessel, the sailors were given a grand sendoff as it parted from Pier 17 on May 17 to cheers from well-wishers and the tunes of a mariachi band.

But it was soon apparent that something had gone horribly wrong. The ship, which was never intended to sail under the Brooklyn Bridge, started drifting backward, heading north instead of south. The collision occurred on the Brooklyn side of the East River in front of Brooklyn Bridge Park, which was filled with tourists enjoying a warm spring evening. Social media showed the vessel striking the underside of the historic 142-year-old bridge. A spokesman for Mayor Adams said the bridge did not sustain any damage from the collision.

Although the 297-foot-long vessel is a sailing ship, at the time of the collision its sails were furled, which meant it would have been relying on motor power in the East River, which is known for its strong currents. Some observers said the ship appeared to experience some kind of mechanical failure and the strong current carried the ship backward. Its tallest mast is 160 feet, more than 30 feet higher than the Brooklyn Bridge clearance of 127 feet.

The two fatalities were victims who fell from the crosstrees of the masts when the collision happened. Others were seen on social media clinging to ropes dangling in harnesses from the crippled masts. Standing on the cross trees, the horizontal cross beams attached to the vertical masts, is a ceremonial salute by sailors when leaving or entering a port. Victims were transported to Bellevue Hospital and NewYork-Presbyterian. Social media showed people being wheeled to ambulances on gurneys, some covered in blood, some in neck braces or slings. All the injured victims fell onto the deck. Nobody had to be pulled from the water, according to the FDNY.

When the ship was towed back across the East River to Pier 36, many of the uninjured cadets were still on board. By late May 19, the Mexican government had yet to grant NTSB permission to interview the cadets.

The ship had already sailed to Kingston, Jamaica; Havana, Cuba; Cozumel, Mexico. After leaving New York, it was slated to sail to Iceland, Scotland, England, Spain, and France.

The US Coast Guard towed the damaged vessel to Pier 36 while an investigation into the crash by the National Transportation Safety Board got underway the morning after the accident.