Collision Between US Navy Ships Near South America: Two Injured

Thu Feb 12 2026 23:59:00 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

A US Navy warship and a supply vessel collided during a refueling operation near South America, resulting in minor injuries to two crew members. The cause of the incident is under investigation.

The US Navy confirmed that one of its guided missile destroyers collided with a supply vessel during a replenishment-at-sea operation near South America. While two crew members sustained minor injuries, both ships continued their missions without significant disruption. The cause of the collision is currently under investigation by US Southern Command.

A US Navy warship collided into a Navy supply vessel during a refuel operation, confirmed US military's Southern Command.

Two people reported minor injuries during Wednesday's replenishment-at-sea operation and are in stable condition.

The vessels - a guided missile destroyer and fast combat support ship - have both continued sailing safely from the site of the incident near South America.

Southern Command did not specify the cause of the collision, which is currently under investigation.

The exact location of the crash between the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Truxtun and the Supply-class fast combat support ship USNS Supply was not immediately clear.

The USNS Supply has been operating in the Caribbean, in Southern Command's area of responsibility, which also extends to parts of the South Atlantic and South Pacific.

US President Donald Trump has ordered a military buildup in the Caribbean over the last few months to target drug trafficking.

In a related incident, two people died on Thursday after the US military struck an alleged drug boat in the eastern Pacific, marking at least 38 lethal drug boat strikes in the region since Trump took office.

The US has also leveraged its military presence to enforce sanctions against Venezuela, amidst ongoing tensions and the arrest of the country's president, Nicolas Maduro, in January.