By: Ruth Brown & Kyle Marian Viterbo

Federal transportation officials have launched an investigation into why a Mexican navy tall ship hit the Brooklyn Bridge in a collision that snapped the vessel’s three masts, killed two crew members and left some sailors dangling from harnesses high in the air.

The ship known as the Cuauhtemoc was visiting New York on a global goodwill tour when the accident occurred on Saturday evening. The vessel could be seen in multiple eyewitness videos traveling swiftly in reverse toward the bridge near the Brooklyn side of the East River. Then its three masts struck the bridge and snapped, one by one, as the ship kept moving.

It was unclear what caused the ship to veer off course. The National Transportation Safety Board announced that it was sending a team to investigate. Investigators were expected to arrive Sunday afternoon.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the 142-year-old bridge escaped major damage, but at least 19 people aboard the ship needed medical treatment.

Two of the four people who suffered serious injuries later died, Adams announced on social media.

Videos showed heavy traffic on the span at the time of the 8:20 p.m. collision. No one on the bridge was hurt.

The vessel, which was flying a giant Mexican flag and had 277 people aboard, then drifted into a pier on the riverbank as onlookers scrambled away.

Sailors could be seen aloft in the rigging on the damaged masts but, remarkably, no one fell into the water, officials said.

Sydney Neidell and Lily Katz told The Associated Press they were sitting outside to watch the sunset when they saw the vessel strike the bridge.

“We saw someone dangling, and I couldn’t tell if it was just blurry or my eyes. And we were able to zoom in on our phone, and there was someone dangling from the harness from the top for like at least like 15 minutes before they were able to rescue them,” Katz said.

Just before the collision, Nick Corso took his phone out to capture the backdrop of the ship and the bridge against a sunset, Instead, he heard what sounded like the loud snapping of a “big twig.” Several more snaps followed.

People in his vicinity began running and “pandemonium” erupted aboard the ship, he said. He later saw a handful of people dangling from a mast.

“I didn’t know what to think, I was like, is this a movie?” he said.

The Mexican navy said in a post on the social platform X that the Cuauhtemoc was a training vessel. It said a total of 22 people were injured.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum lamented the loss of the two crew members.

“Our solidarity and support go out to their families,” Sheinbaum said on X.

Mexico’s naval secretary, Adm. Raymundo Pedro Morales Ángeles, said in a statement Sunday that the navy was in contact with the families of victims and vowed to conduct a transparent investigation. He thanked the first responders in New York.

The Brooklyn Bridge, which opened in 1883, has a nearly 1,600-foot (490-meter) main span supported by two masonry towers. More than 100,000 vehicles and an estimated 32,000 pedestrians cross every day, according to the city’s transportation department. Its walkway is a major tourist attraction.

Traffic was halted after the collision but was allowed to resume after an inspection, city officials said.

(AP)

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By: Jerome Brookshire

After three days of halted service, mounting commuter frustration, and urgent political pressure, New Jersey’s first statewide transit strike in more than four decades came to an end Sunday evening, following a breakthrough agreement between New Jersey Transit (NJ Transit) and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET). As reported by The New York Times, trains are expected to resume full service by Tuesday morning, while Monday will see the continuation of NJ Transit’s contingency plan relying on chartered buses and PATH rail connections.

The abrupt strike, which began at 12:01 a.m. Friday, paralyzed NJ Transit’s commuter train network—one of the largest in the nation—affecting approximately 350,000 daily riders and exposing the region’s heavy dependence on the rail system. The agreement, which was mediated by the National Mediation Board over the weekend, brought an end to a labor standoff that had festered for more than five years.

Governor Philip D. Murphy, speaking at a Sunday night press conference, described the moment as a “collective sigh of relief” for New Jersey’s workforce and commuters. However, as The New York Times notes, Murphy offered no specifics about the terms of the deal, only characterizing it as “fair to NJ Transit’s employees while also being affordable for our state’s commuters and taxpayers.”

The key point of contention during negotiations had been salary parity. Engineers at NJ Transit have long argued that their pay lags behind that of peers at Amtrak and New York’s other commuter rail services. According to the report in The New York Times, the prior tentative deal—rejected by the engineers in April—would have increased their average annual salary from $135,000 to $172,000. Despite the substantial proposed raise, the union rejected the offer, citing unresolved issues around work rules and scheduling.

Governor Murphy, who has been vocal in his criticism of the union’s decision to strike, did not mince words earlier in the week. As The New York Times reported, he called the walkout “a mess of their own making,” accusing the union of abandoning commuters during a critical time.

Union General Chairman Thomas Haas, for his part, countered that NJ Transit’s negotiators had walked away from the bargaining table on Thursday night, forcing the union’s hand. “They left us with nobody to bargain with and no choice but to strike,” Haas stated.

Though the strike lasted only three days, the impact was immediate and far-reaching. The New York Times documented widespread confusion and disruption on Friday morning as commuters arrived at stations unaware of the shutdown. Many were left stranded or forced to pay out of pocket for alternatives, such as Amtrak or car services. One commuter, Chris Smith, told The Times he paid $79 for a one-way Amtrak ticket to his job in Midtown Manhattan. “They’re selfish,” he said of NJ Transit. “Friday was horrible. Trust me.”

Another commuter, Jay Frederick, who works at Northern State Prison in Newark, said he was unable to get to work at all. “It’s a relief that it’s over,” he told The New York Times.

The economic fallout was not limited to individual workers. According to the Partnership for New York City, each hour of delay for NJ Transit riders caused an estimated $6 million in lost productivity in the New York metropolitan area.

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