Brooklyn Bridge ship crash: Mexico mourns killed Navy cadets

Mexicans are mourning the demise of two younger Navy cadets who have been killed on Saturday when the coaching tall ship ARM Cuauhtémoc crashed into Brooklyn Bridge.

América Sánchez, 20, and 23-year-old Adal Jair Maldonado Marcos have been among the many 277 crew members on board the Mexican Navy’s crusing ship when its three masts snapped as they hit the bridge.

Based on Mexican media, Sánchez was one of many cadets who was standing on prime of the rigging on the time of the accident.

Twenty-two different crew members have been injured, three of them critically, the Mexican Navy mentioned.

The commander of the Mexican Navy, Admiral Pedro Raymundo Morales, mentioned all of the crew members properly sufficient to journey can be taken again to their homeland quickly.

The physique of América Sánchez is scheduled to be transferred to the Naval Academy in her residence state of Veracruz in a while Monday.

Her mom, Rocío Hernández, described the 20-year-old cadet as “an exemplary daughter” who was “a devoted scholar” aiming to grow to be a naval engineer.

Standing earlier than an impromptu altar adorned with flowers and pictures of América Sánchez dressed up for her “quinceañera”, the celebration marking her fifteenth birthday, Ms Hernández paid tribute to her daughter.

“She was a warrior, a soldier who did not surrender, who at all times fought for her targets,” she mentioned, including that her daughter solely had one yr left till her commencement.

“They [the Navy] will maintain a personal ceremony in her honour on the Veracruz Naval Academy for her after which I’ll deliver her residence,” Ms Hernández mentioned thanking all of her daughter’s family, mates and lecturers, whom she requested “to recollect her [América] with affection”.

In San Mateo del Mar, a coastal city in Oaxaca state, mates and family of Adal Jair Maldonado Marcos have additionally been paying their respects after the younger cadet was confirmed because the second deadly sufferer of the crash.

His mates instructed native media that the 23-year-old had at all times dreamt of following in his father’s footsteps and changing into a sailor.

Being on board the Cuauhtémoc, often known as “Knight of the Seas”, had been his biggest want, they recalled.

“The ocean noticed him being born and the ocean was a witness to his passing,” one pal to media, including that “all of us who knew him will bear in mind him as a task mannequin of an clever youth”.

The investigation into how the accident occurred continues to be below approach.

“That is the beginning of a protracted course of,” Michael Graham of the Nationwide Transportation Security Board (NTSB) mentioned throughout a briefing on Monday. “We is not going to be drawing any conclusions, we is not going to speculate.”

Mr Graham mentioned there was “no vital structural harm” to the load-bearing parts of the Brooklyn Bridge.

His colleague, Brian Younger, offered a preliminary timeline of occasions on the night time of 17 Could.

• At 20:20 native time (00:20 GMT), the Cuauhtémoc backed away from Manhattan’s Pier 17 with the help of a tug boat. It supposed to sail south on the East River earlier than heading out to sea, Mr Younger mentioned
• After departing the pier, the ship’s astern (backwards) movement and pace elevated as much as 6 knots
• At 20:24 a radio broadcast was sounded requesting help from different tugboats within the space. It was adopted by two different requests
• At 20:24 and 45 seconds, the Cuauhtémoc’s mast struck the underside of the bridge
• At 20:27 the ship got here to a cease
• By 20:30, New York Metropolis police and firefighters arrived on the scene

New York police officers beforehand mentioned it appeared that the Cuauhtémoc had misplaced energy because it was leaving New York Harbour and was dragged in the direction of Brooklyn Bridge by the present.

Its three masts, measuring greater than 48m, hit the bottom of the bridge, which -according to the New York transport division’s web site – solely has a clearance of 41.1m.

All three masts collapsed and video footage taken by bystanders reveals a few of the crew members dangling from the yards and sails.

Mr Graham mentioned that his crew would think about the standing of the engine throughout their investigation.

“On behalf of the NTSB, I want to categorical my most honest condolences to the households and family members of those that misplaced their lives on this horrible tragedy,” he mentioned.

Mexico’s Navy Secretary Raymundo Pedro Morales Ángeles mentioned in a press release the outcomes of any investigation can be adopted with “complete transparency and accountability”.

The Cuauhtémoc left Acapulco, Mexico, on 6 April on a tour that included stops in New York and Aberdeen, Scotland, for the town’s Tall Ships race in July.