Mexican tall ship strikes Brooklyn Bridge, snapping masts, injuring sailors
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New York (AP): A Mexican navy sailing ship hit the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday during a promotional tour in New York City, the top of its three masts slamming into the iconic span and partially collapsing as the boat floated in the East River. Nineteen people were injured in the crash.
The New York Fire Department press desk confirmed that authorities responded to injuries.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said 19 people were injured in the crash, four seriously, but the 142-year-old bridge was spared major damage. The cause of the collision was under investigation.
In a scene captured in multiple eyewitness videos, the masts could be seen snapping and partially collapsing as they crashed into the deck of the bridge. Videos showed heavy traffic on the span at the time of the collision.
The vessel, which was flying a giant green, white and red Mexican flag, then drifted toward the edge of the river as onlookers scrambled away from shore. Sailors could be seen aloft in the rigging on the damaged masts.
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 and one of its masts snap. Looking closer, they saw someone dangling from high on the ship.
“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.
They said they saw two people removed from the ship on stretchers onto smaller boats.
The Mexican navy said in a post on the social platform X that the Cuauhtemoc, an academy training vessel, was damaged in an accident with the Brooklyn Bridge that prevented it from continuing its voyage.
It added that the status of personnel and material was under review by naval and local authorities, which were providing assistance.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry said on X that its ambassador to the U.S. and officials from the Mexican consulate in New York were in contact with local authorities to provide assistance to “the affected cadets,” but it did not mention injuries.
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, and its walkway is a major tourist attraction.
The Cuauhtemoc - about 297 feet long and 40 feet wide (90.5 meters long and 12 meters wide), according to the Mexican navy - sailed for the first time in 1982.
Each year it sets out at the end of classes at the naval military school to finish cadets' training. This year it left the Mexican port of Acapulco, on the Pacific coast, on April 6 with 277 people onboard, the navy said then.
The Mexican consulate said May 13 on X that the Cuauhtemoc, also called the “Ambassador and Knight of the Seas,” arrived that day and docked at pier 17. It invited people to visit through May 17.
The ship was scheduled to visit 22 ports in 15 nations, including Kingston, Jamaica; Havana, Cuba; Cozumel, Mexico; and New York.
It also had planned to go to Reykjavik, Iceland; Bordeaux, Saint Malo and Dunkirk, France; and Aberdeen, Scotland, among others, for a total of 254 days, 170 of them at sea.
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UP cites SC ruling 'no loudspeakers during night hours' to clarify mosque announcements for Ramzan
Lucknow (PTI): The Uttar Pradesh government on Thursday clarified its stand on announcements from mosques for 'sehri' and 'iftar' during Ramzan, saying the practice dates back to a time when clocks were not widely in use, and that the Supreme Court orders on use of loudspeakers remained in force.
Samajwadi Party member Kamal Akhtar raised the issue during Zero Hour in the Assembly, saying since festivals of all religions, including Holi, Diwali, Dussehra, Kanwar Yatra as well as Christian and Sikh celebrations, are observed in the state, mosques should be allowed to use loudspeakers for making announcements during the holy month of Ramzan that commenced on Thursday.
Akhtar said brief announcements are traditionally made from the mosques to inform people observing fast about the timings of ‘sehri’ (pre-dawn meal) and ‘iftar’ (meal to break the fast).
He also claimed that the government recently removed loudspeakers from most religious places, and urged it to permit mosque announcements during Ramzan to provide relief to people.
The Supreme Court prohibits the use of loudspeakers, public address systems, and sound-producing instruments from 10 pm to 6 am, except in closed premises such as auditoriums, conference rooms, and banquet halls for internal communication.
Responding to Akhtar, Finance and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna said the Supreme Court has clearly directed that loudspeakers should not be used after 10 pm.
Even at weddings, police ensure compliance if complaints are received about loudspeakers being used beyond the stipulated time, he said.
Referring to the tradition of mosque announcements for ‘sehri’ and ‘iftar’, Khanna said the practice originated when clocks were not common and people estimated time by the position of the sun.
“Today, almost every person – whether a rickshaw puller, street vendor or vegetable seller – has a mobile phone that shows time. So the necessity is no longer there,” he said.
While the government does not interfere in anyone's religious beliefs, the Supreme Court has laid down the rules on the use of loudspeakers, and “it is not our order”, the minister said.
Claiming that the apex court order relates to sound levels and does not prohibit the use of loudspeakers, Akhtar urged the minister to allow the announcements during Ramzan.
The minister, however, did not offer any further reply.
