The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board is asking for witnesses who shot cell phone videos of the Mexican naval ship Cuauhtémoc striking the Brooklyn Bridge to come forward as the agency works with Mexican authorities to get aboard and access any data recorders the sailboat may have, officials said Tuesday.
The Cuauhtémoc remains docked off Pier 37 as work crews shore up the ship’s three splintered masts. The ship is expected to be taken to a nearby salvage yard where a full investigation can be held.
Two crew members died on the ship when its masts collided with the underside of the bridge on Saturday night.
The NTSB is still negotiating access to the ship with the Mexican government, NTSB Board Member Michael Graham said Monday.
Once they’re allowed on board they hope to interview crew members and see if the ship had any data recorders that can provide critical information, said Graham, who could not confirm reports by the NYPD that an engine failure may have caused the crash.
“We don’t know where the NYPD got that data,” Graham said. “We haven’t accessed the engine, so we don’t know that. We’re not sure where they got that from. We are optimistic we will have that access very soon.”
While they work on gaining access, Graham asked anyone who has video of the crash to reach out to investigators at Witness@ntsb.gov.
At the time of the collision, the ship was sailing against the river’s tide and facing 10 mph wind.
The NTSB will focus on what mechanical issues and conditions in the river may have led to the crash.
The agency will also be checking tugboat protocols in the East River after officials expressed that a tugboat taking the ship away from Pier 17 at South Street Seaport should have towed the vessel further away.
Video of the incident shows a tugboat racing to catch up with the ship as it drifts in the wrong direction.
After leaving the pier, the ship accelerated backwards, ultimately reaching a speed of about 6 knots. “At 8:24 p.m., the VHF radio broadcast was sounded requesting assistance from other tugboats in the area of the bridge,” investigator in charge Brian Young said. That broadcast was followed by additional calls for assistance.
“At 8:24 and 45 seconds, the vessel’s masts struck the underside of the Brooklyn Bridge,” Young said.
Young said his investigators are still trying to determine exactly why the ship began to accelerate backwards.
The bridge avoided serious damage and was never at risk of collapse, officials said.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Monday the boat would likely be repaired at a New York shipyard and returned to the Mexican navy.
Many of the crew members from the ship returned to their home country on Monday.
The ship was heading for Iceland when it drifted into the East River span, which is about 30 feet lower than the ship’s masts. It was supposed to head south to refuel in Bay Ridge before heading out of New York Harbor and was never meant to sail under the bridge.
Crew members were harnessed to the masts for the ship’s traditional departure performance at the time of the collision.
According to the FDNY, 27 of those aboard were treated for injuries, with 11 in critical condition.
The deceased were identified Sunday as América Yamilet Sanchez, 21, and Adal Jair Marcos, 22.
The Cuauhtémoc arrived in New York last week as part of a global goodwill tour. It had been docked at South Street Seaport Pier 17 and was open to visitors.
