The Port of New Orleans has initiated federal legal action against the ownership and management teams of a commercial asphalt tanker that collided with a docked passenger river cruise vessel on a Friday afternoon on the Mississippi River, according to newly unsealed court filings. The incident, which local officials have described as a “miracle on the Mississippi” given the lack of fatalities, unfolded when the 423-foot tanker M/V Atlantic Asphalt struck the moored paddlewheel cruise ship American Heritage, leaving the latter listing sharply to one side and partially submerged in the river’s currents. At the time of impact, the American Heritage was wrapping up an eight-day regional cruise that stopped at ports across Louisiana and Mississippi, carrying 129 passengers alongside its on-board crew. More than 100 passengers required emergency rescue from the frigid river waters in the immediate aftermath of the crash, with 32 individuals transported to local medical facilities for non-life-threatening injuries; no people were reported missing in the coordinated multi-agency rescue operation that temporarily halted all Mississippi River marine traffic in the surrounding stretch. U.S. Coast Guard Captain Melanie Burnham confirmed during an initial press briefing that early investigative indicators point to a potential steering failure on the tanker, though the full root cause of the collision remains under active official review. The Port of New Orleans’ lawsuit, filed in the Eastern District of Louisiana federal court, names three defendants: the M/V Atlantic Asphalt itself, its registered owner Nave Shipping SA, and its operational manager Thome Ship Management Pte Ltd. Nave Shipping operates as a subsidiary of the China State Shipbuilding Corporation, which local authorities and media have reached out to for official comment, alongside Thome Ship Management. The Singapore-based ship management firm released a public statement on Saturday confirming all crew members aboard the Atlantic Asphalt are safe and accounted for, noting the company is fully cooperating with ongoing regulatory investigations. Court documents allege the collision stemmed from “negligence, gross negligence, fault or carelessness” on the part of the tanker and its operating firms, claiming the parties failed to deploy every available resource to mitigate collision risk and avoid striking the moored cruise ship. The port is seeking financial restitution to cover all associated costs, including post-incident site cleanup, mandatory structural safety inspections, full repairs to damaged port terminal infrastructure, and other related expenses that already exceed $1 million USD (approximately £756,000). The suit additionally includes a formal request for the courts to order the seizure and potential forced sale of the M/V Atlantic Asphalt to satisfy outstanding damage claims, as officials continue to assess the full scope of property and environmental harm caused by the high-impact crash.