The Esso Brussels dropped anchor in the southernmost anchorage of The Narrows in New York Harbor on June 1, 1973, fully loaded with 319,402 barrels (50,780.9 m3) of light Nigerian crude oil destined for Exxon's Bayway Refinery.

While she waited for the high tide, her mixed European crew of 36 men and one woman, first steward Gisele Rome, under the command of Captain Constant Dert went about their daily routine into the evening of the 1st.

Blowing a series of short rapid blasts on the ship's whistle signaling that Sea Witch was in distress and ordering the general alarm bell rung to alert the crew, both the pilot and the captain watched as both of her anchors failed to deploy.

This movement created a suction force which pinned the Esso Brussel's lifeboat against the tanker's hull and brought the pool of flaming oil around to the port side of the ship.

Within minutes of the collision the veteran FDNY fireboat Fire Fighter arrived to what the firefighters aboard would later describe as a sea of flames that extended 3,000 yards in front of them.

Fortunately, the anchor chains on the Esso Brussels parted at this point and both ships passed under the bridge quickly, preventing the steel from suffering heat damage.

Propelled by the Sea Witch's still-running engines and the outbound tide, the ships proceeded into outer New York Harbor and ran aground in Gravesend Bay, burning furiously.

The US Coast Guard and FDNY agreed to have tugs separate the vessels to avoid the risk of the rest of the oil aboard the Esso Brussels catching fire.

By this time, tugs and small craft managed to rescue the Esso Brussels survivors from the water, but 13 of her crew were lost and never seen again, including Captain Dert.

In the months following the collision the severely damaged Esso Brussels remained at the Military Ocean Terminal until November 1973,[citation needed] when she was purchased by Iphigenia Shipping & Trading Co, Piraeus, Greece.