Officials Shocked as Tanker-Cruiser Crash Ends in 'Literal Miracle on the Mississippi' with No Fatalities
Joe Knab came from Wichita Kansas, to New Orleans, and thought on Friday he would see the Mississippi River aboard the American Heritage cruise ship.
He did, but not the way he expected.
Knab was among the passengers thrown into the water after a tanker crashed into the ship, with the impact eventually flipping the ship on its side as it partially sank.
“I think that’s pretty much a miracle,” Knab said, noting that he spent 15 to 20 minutes in the water before being rescued, according to WDSU-TV.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry agreed, calling the rescue of every single person on the ship “a literal miracle on the Mississippi,” according to WDSU-TV.
“This is a miracle,” Landry said. “The Mississippi River is not some quiet pond, right? I mean, there were challenges out there.”
“We got everybody.”
“We have zero people unaccounted for, which is a miracle,” New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno said.
According to Fox News, the tanker involved lost control before it hit the cruise ship.
🚨 WATCH: New angle shows cruise ship passengers climbing over railings and jumping into the Mississippi River as the American Heritage capsizes after being struck by a tanker in New Orleans. https://t.co/vH1dDliILA
— World News Alerts (@AustinBrunette5) November 14, 2026
Moreno said first responders jumped into the water to help, pulling about 100 people from the river, according to CBS News.
Moreno said 32 passengers from the cruise ship were taken to local hospitals. As of Saturday, only eight remained, with two in serious condition and the rest in good condition.
Witness, Jamie Holford said he saw people scurrying to safety as the boat was hit and the rolled.
All passengers and crew members aboard a river cruise ship that capsized after a tanker collision in New Orleans on Friday were accounted for, with 32 people hospitalized but none critically injured, according to Mayor Helena Moreno https://t.co/9AHNPKQ1LG https://t.co/gXpA0kjI79
— Bloomberg (@business) November 14, 2026
“It looked like something off the Titanic,” he said.
Holford said the impact “sounded like a war movie. Just imagine tons of steel crunching. That’s what it sounded like.”
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