I've only ever heard of two ships hitting bridges; both recently, both in the US, both lost power and drifted into the bridge.
At least this bridge fall like a house of cards, I guess because the masts broke first.
replies(11):
In 1921, the steel mainmast on the six-masted schooner Edward J. Lawrence was bent as the vessel was being towed under the bridge at high tide. [2]
In 1935, the first three of four steel masts were bent as the Hamburg-American freighter Tirpitz passed northward under the bridge during an "abnormally high tide." [3]
In 1986, a radar was knocked out of commission when the South Korean freighter Hai Soo scraped the bridge while heading south. [4]
[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/17/nyregion/brooklyn-bridge-...
[2] https://www.nytimes.com/1921/02/04/archives/ship-bends-mast-...
[3] https://www.nytimes.com/1935/10/03/archives/masts-of-freight...
[4] https://www.nytimes.com/1986/04/11/nyregion/new-york-day-by-...