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Tall Ship Cuauhtemoc Departs New York After Collision Damage Repairs

Cuauhtemoc
TS Cuauhtemoc gets under way, October 4 (Mexican Embassy in New York)

Published Oct 5, 2025 10:22 PM by The Maritime Executive

 

The damaged sail training ship Cuauhtémoc has been repaired at a shipyard in Staten Island, and on Saturday it departed Manhattan en route for its home port of Cozumel, Mexico. The departure ends the ship's long six-month sojourn in New York City and brings the saga of the vessel's accident to a close. 

On the evening of May 17, Cuauhtémoc left Manhattan's Pier 17 with dozens of cadets aloft in the rigging for a ceremonial departure. Under the guidance of a docking pilot, the vessel moved astern and away from the pier, but then - for reasons that remain under investigation - her maneuvers deviated from the pilot's orders. The docking pilot ordered ahead propulsion, but the vessel accelerated astern. Within minutes, the tall ship hit the underside of a span of the bridge, breaking three masts. Tragically, two people were killed and 22 injured.

Cuauhtémoc sustained serious damage aloft, and her rudder post was deformed and jammed over to starboard. Repairs to the vessel took four months, and the ship was ready to return to service in late September. She returned to a pier in New York for a public tours, then prepared to get under way at last. She departed the harbor on Saturday afternoon, without further incident - and this time, without anyone aloft. 

The investigation into the cause of the casualty is still under way, led by the National Transportation Safety Board.