NYC Accident

[dwco5051]

A lot of unanswered question on how this could have happened. RIP to the 2 I am assuming midshipmen who were on the yardarms when this happened. https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/brooklyn-bridge-mexican-navy-ship-05-18-25-hnk

 

[aspeck]

Sad

 

[cyclops222]

The mast was way taller than the bridge bottom. How did that happen on a naval training ship ?

 

[aspeck]

The mast was way taller than the bridge bottom. How did that happen on a naval training ship ?

There are certainly lots of questions! I have heard mechanical failure and operator error. We will have to wait and see what the investigation reveals.

 

[Scott Danforth]

the statement that I read was mechanical failure resulting in loss of helm control shortly after leaving the dock

 

[DeepCMark58A]

Drop the anchor?

 

[dwco5051]

Drop the anchor?

I don't know what the current velocity was when she departed but if they had a complete propulsion and/or rudder failure that might have been the only way to avert the crash. Leaving port against the current would be best in an area of restricted maneuverability as that is when the ship has the most control except in a case of lost power and a low bridge right behind you. Sea and anchor detail should have been set before the ship even left the dock but if they were facing a 5 to 6 knot current in may not have stopped it in time anyway.

 

[bigblocksarefun]

She was heading backwards. I couldn't really tell from the video I saw, but either she lost propulsion control & the lovely East river current carried her in or propulsion failed in reverse (I've seen this happen on newer variable pitch prop ships but never on anything this old) and she literally just backed into the bridge. Max charted height for the Brooklyn is 127'. If this boat is anything like the ones she & her sisters are based on (EAGLE & her sisters), the main mast height is 135'.
She was getting underway from Pier 17 (below the Brooklyn) to head for NY Harbor and what happened, happened. Unfortunately now she does have plenty of bridge clearance and they've parked her above the Manhattan bridge (134' VC).
I've seen lots of comments about this being a Mexican training ship but I don't think people realize that this could have just as easily happened to EAGLE. Could've just as easily been CG Academy cadets falling off those yardarms.
I am curious as to why they didn't park her in the Hudson where there aren't bridges to worry about for a ways. That's where all the visiting Fleet Week ships go.

 

[bigblocksarefun]

Drop the anchor?

Wouldn't have grabbed fast enough. Think DALI.

If anyone wonders here are the typical steps for a Navy vessel to prepare to get underway. www.usni.org/sites/default/files/inline-files/WOG AppC-H.pdf

Yeah for the US, maybe most western countries. I dunno how many other foreign entities you ever got to work with during your career, but the Central & South American ones are quite a bit more fast & loose, less regimented (though this may change for the Mexicans after this). Especially Columbia, and they have one of the sister ships (GLORIA).

 

[bigblocksarefun]

Sal's latest take:

I didn't think it would have one (EAGLE doesn't) but I have seen CPP failures happen just like this, specifically the Rolls-Royce units. Happened to a 225' large buoy tender out of Alaska some years back. They were setting a sea buoy, normally the DPS (dynamic positioning system) uses propulsion and thruster control to keep the ship in the specified location. The computerized control system took a sh!t and while they were setting this buoy they found out the hard way when this happens that the mechanical default is clutch astern.

 

[aspeck]

Very interesting take from Sal. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Grub54891]

Yeah, I was wondering if it was fly by wire. When those get a glitch there is nothing you can do without shutting down the entire thing and waiting for a re-start. Had a ferry boat up here that had similar issues, but they were far from any obsticles. After re-start it was ok. They had the service techs go through the system and from what I heard it's fixed.

 

[cyclops222]

Now you know why ALL computerized systems are called......Artificial Intelligence.