08/13/2026
On This Day in 1521, Cuauhtémoc, the last Aztec emperor, surrendered to Hernán Cortés after an 80-day siege, marking the fall of Tenochtitlan and the end of the Aztec Empire.
More than 500 years later, on May 17, 2025, the Mexican Navy training barque Cuauhtémoc, named in his honor, became at least the fifth vessel known to have struck the Brooklyn Bridge. The tragic collision claimed the lives of two crew members. In the days that followed, SCI provided pastoral care and coordinated a memorial service honoring the fallen mariners while supporting their surviving crewmates.
This historic image shows the Brooklyn Bridge in the upper right, with SCI's former headquarters at 25 South Street on the left and the newly opened FDR Drive between. Since its first cables were strung in 1877, the bridge has limited the height of vessels navigating the East River.
