Tanker collides with riverboat on Mississippi River near New Orleans; all rescued

An asphalt tanker collided with a river passenger boat on the Mississippi River near downtown New Orleans on Friday, capsizing the vessel and triggering a large-scale rescue operation.

What happened

The Atlantic Asphalt tanker struck the American Heritage riverboat — owned by American Cruise Lines — around 12:30 p.m. local time Friday, Nov. 13, 2026, near the Port of New Orleans administration building. The passenger vessel had been docked for about two hours as the crew prepared for disembarkation when the collision occurred.

“The tanker lost control and collided into the cruise ship,” New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno said at a news conference Friday afternoon. “The passengers began disembarking from the ship after that collision. But while that was happening, the cruise ship began to sink, and then eventually, the cruise ship toppled over and flipped.”

Rescue operation

Nearly 200 people were aboard the American Heritage at the time of impact. All were accounted for and rescued — what Mayor Moreno called a “miracle on the Mississippi.”

• 30+ people injured, including 30 passengers and two tanker officers
• All injured were hospitalized with non-critical injuries
• No fatalities and no children involved, according to authorities
• A three-alarm response dispatched 23 units and 57 personnel
• Some passengers were pulled from the water; others were transferred to rescue boats

Investigation

The National Transportation Safety Board is launching an investigation team expected to arrive Saturday morning. The U.S. Coast Guard said the tanker appears to have suffered “some type of a loss of steering” before the collision, though the exact cause remains under investigation.

The Mississippi River remains closed between mile markers 93 and 96 while responders assess the situation. The riverboat is “significantly damaged,” with only a small portion remaining above the water line, according to U.S. Coast Guard Capt. Melanie Burnham.

Port of New Orleans sues tanker owners

The Port of New Orleans has filed a federal lawsuit blaming the tanker for the crash. The suit, filed on Friday in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, names the M/V Atlantic Asphalt, its owner Nave Shipping SA and its manager Thome Ship Management Pte Ltd.

According to court documents, the port is claiming more than $1 million in damage and says its terminal was “significantly damaged.” It wants compensation for cleanup, inspections, repairs and other costs, and has asked the court to have the tanker seized and sold to cover the bill.

The filing accuses the ship and its operators of “negligence, gross negligence, fault or carelessness,” and says they failed “to use all available means to avoid the risk” of hitting the moored riverboat.

Nave Shipping is a subsidiary of state-owned China State Shipbuilding Corporation. Thome said on Saturday that the tanker’s crew were safe and accounted for, and that it was “fully complying” with local authorities’ investigations. The port authority put the number of passengers aboard the American Heritage at about 129, plus crew; the riverboat was finishing an eight-day cruise through Louisiana and Mississippi.

Context

The collision comes on the same day as the FAA’s nationwide ground stop, which was lifted Friday night after nearly five hours of halted departures. Both incidents involved transportation infrastructure failures, though officials said there is no indication the two events are related.

Updated November 15, 2026: adds the Port of New Orleans lawsuit. This is a developing story and will be updated as the NTSB and Coast Guard release further findings.