WASHINGTON (AP) — Two Navy ships deployed by the Trump administration during a massive military buildup in the Caribbean collided, leaving two soldiers with minor injuries, U.S. Southern Command said Thursday.
The destroyer USS Truxton and the supply ship USS Resupply collided on Wednesday as the warship was loading new supplies. This maneuver typically causes ships to sail parallel, often within hundreds of feet, while fuel and supplies are transferred across the gap via hoses and cables.
A military statement said two people reported minor injuries following the collision and were in stable condition. According to Southern Command, the two ships are currently sailing safely.
The USS Truxton is the latest addition to a large Caribbean fleet of 12 ships that includes the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, and several amphibious assault ships carrying thousands of Marines.
The Republican government established the largest military presence in the region in generations and then carried out a series of deadly attacks on suspected drug-trafficking ships since September. Seizure of Sanctioned Oil Tankers and launched a raid to capture then-President of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro.
The USS Truxton left its homeport in Norfolk, Virginia, on February 3. The destroyer had to return to port for several days for “emergency equipment repairs” before finally setting sail for the Caribbean on February 6, according to a Navy official. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive operational details.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the collision, which is rare for warships. The Navy’s most recent collision occurred in February 2025, when the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier collided with a commercial ship outside the Suez Canal near Port Said, Egypt. This resulted in minor damage to the Truman, but no injuries.
An investigation released in December revealed that officers operating the ship were operating at unsafe speeds as the carrier lagged behind schedule.
The report found that when a commercial ship entered the path of a collision with the aircraft carrier, the officials responsible did not take enough action to get out of harm’s way and that the ship was traveling so fast that it needed to travel nearly a mile and a half before stopping after shutting down its engines.
