The first reports out of New Orleans were frightening: at least 14 people had been pulled from the Mississippi River after the asphalt tanker Atlantic Asphalt struck the docked cruise ship American Heritage around 12:30 p.m. on November 13. The tanker reportedly lost steering control while traveling upriver and broadsided the stationary paddlewheeler as passengers were getting off. The riverboat capsized and threw people into the water, and reports say roughly 100 passengers and crew ended up in the river. Tugboat operators, nearby workers, police and other rescuers rushed in to help.

As the day went on, the picture became far less grim. Officials said everyone aboard was accounted for, with no deaths, among the nearly 200 passengers and crew on the ship. Thirty-two people were taken to hospitals with non-critical injuries, and by Saturday eight remained hospitalized, two of them in serious condition. The mayor called it a "miracle on the Mississippi," and officials say the cruise ship could take weeks to remove. The Coast Guard and the NTSB are expected to investigate, and the exact reason the tanker lost steering is still unknown.