The Mexican Navy ship which careened into the Brooklyn Bridge with deadly consequences may have suffered an engine failure, investigators have revealed.
NTSB officials have given more details about the fateful moments before the hulking Cuauhtémoc Training Ship struck the iconic New York City landmark.
Their Monday press conference came as the second of the two Mexican sailors who died in the horrific collision on Saturday night was named as Adal Jair Marcos, 22.
Marcos, of Oaxaca, has been remembered by family as an avid traveler who had been on board the Cuauhtémoc for the past nine months of its world tour.
A childhood friend of Marcos told the Daily News he was ‘a sincere and loyal friend, who always supports others in difficult times’ and ‘spread joy with his smile’.
Navy cadet América Yamilet Sánchez, 20, was previously identified as the other victim who died while terrified tourists watched from the docks.
Both Sánchez and Marcos were on the masts of the 160-foot-tall ship when it hit the bridge. The colossal impact caused them to fall to their deaths on the deck below.
Brian Young, who is leading the NTSB’s investigation into the horror incident, described ‘an engine failure’ as a ‘possible cause of the bridge strike’.
Responding to questions at a press conference on Monday, he said: ‘The question pertains to a possible cause of the bridge strike… (it) possibly was an engine failure.
‘We have an engineering group led by myself, and we will look at the status of the engine.
‘We will look for any failures, we will look for engine inspections, and we’ll talk to the crew about what may have possibly occurred with the engine.’
The ship was carrying 277 crew members, and 22 people were injured when it smashed into the Brooklyn Bridge at 8.25pm on Saturday night.
The NYPD previously said the Mexican Navy ship likely suffered a ‘mechanical issue’ before losing power.
Sánchez, from Xalapa, Mexico, shared a post on social media just eight hours before showing her enjoying a night out in the Big Apple on what would be her final day.
The naval academy engineering student shared a bright-eyed photograph of herself beaming on board the training ship, with the caption ‘NY’ alongside a red heart emoji.
Sánchez was known in her hometown as a talented swimmer who won several medals in the sport, according to local outlet E-Consulta Velacruz.
Young added that investigators are also looking into the tugboat which assisted the ship moving off the pier five minutes before the crash.
‘As far as we know at this time, the tugboat had assisted the vessel moving off the pier,’ he told the press conference.
‘Part of our investigation will be to look into the tugboat’s policies and procedures for the operation once helping the vessel get off the pier – what it’s guidance would be and the job it would have to do.’
NTSB board member Michael Graham said that all information provided at the press conference was ‘preliminary’ as the investigation has only just begun.
He said investigators were currently ‘gathering perishable evidence’ from the scene.
‘This is the start of a long process,’ Graham told the conference.
‘We will not be drawing any conclusions, we will not speculate, we will also not be determining the probable cause while we are on scene.’
Young also laid out the timeline for the exact moment the horror struck.
He said the boat arrived in New York City around noon on May 13. It docked portside at Pier 17 and remained there for three days, the investigator said.
The troubles began on Saturday, May 17, just five minutes after it left the dock at 8.20pm, as captains planned to navigate to Iceland.
Young said the ship had been intending to sail south down the East River before heading out to sea, but instead it careened towards the Brooklyn Bridge.
He said a radio broadcast requesting assistance from other tugboats in the area was transmitted at 8.24pm. This was followed up by two more requests for assistance.
The vessel came to a stop at 8.27pm, and the NYPD and FDNY emergency responders were on scene three minutes later, Young said.
Despite the speedy response, it was too late for the two young cadets who lost their lives on board the ship.
Most of the cadets who survived have since flown home to Mexico. Two people were still receiving treatment in hospital as of Monday afternoon.
Graham said the NTSB would release an official preliminary report in 30 days, but the full investigation would take at least a year.
He confirmed that the Brooklyn Bridge had not sustained any ‘significant damage’.