ISMAILIA, Egypt (AP) – Tugboats and a specialized suction dredger worked Friday to evacuate a giant container that has been trapped sideways in Egypt’s Suez Canal for the past three days, blocking a crucial waterway for shipping world.
The Ever Give, a Panama-flagged ship carrying cargo between Asia and Europe, ran aground on the narrow channel that runs between Africa and the Sinai Peninsula. He was trapped in a stretch of a single lane of the canal, about six miles north of the southern entrance, near the city of Suez.
The ship, owned by Japanese firm Shoei Kisen KK, has blocked traffic on the canal, causing headaches for world trade.
About 10% of world trade flows through the canal, which is particularly crucial for oil transportation. The closure could also affect oil and gas shipments to Europe from the Middle East.
At least 150 ships were waiting for the Ever Ever done to be cleaned, including ships near Port Said in the Mediterranean Sea, Port Suez in the Red Sea and those already trapped in the canal system of Egypt’s Great Bitter Lake, according to Leth Agencies, which provides services for the channel.
Since Friday morning, the ship remained ashore, Leth agencies added. It is still unclear when the route would reopen.
An Egyptian official from the Suez Canal Authority described the work as complex and said those trying to evacuate the ship wanted to avoid complications that could prolong the closure of the canal. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not allowed to speak to journalists.
The bow of the Ever Give touched the east wall, while its stern seemed lodged against the west wall.
A team from Boskalis, a Dutch company specializing in recovery, began work with the canal authority on Thursday. Rescue efforts have focused on dredging to remove sand and mud around the ship’s bow port.
The Suez Canal Authority, which operates the waterway, deployed tugs and a specialized suction dredger that is capable of moving 2,000 cubic meters of material every hour.
The Suez Canal Authority said Thursday afternoon that it would have to remove between 15,000 and 20,000 cubic meters (530,000 to 706,000 cubic feet) of sand to reach a depth of 12 to 16 meters (39 to 52 feet). That depth is likely to allow the boat to float freely again, he said.
It was not immediately known what caused Ever Give to run aground on Tuesday. GAC, a global transportation and logistics company, said the ship had experienced a blackout without deepening.
Evergreen Marine Corp., a major Taiwan-based shipping company that operates the ship, said in a statement that Ever Give had been overtaken by strong winds as it entered the canal from the Red Sea, but that none of its containers were ‘had sunk.
Suez Canal authority also blamed the bad weather for the incident.
Using data from trackers of the automatic vessel identification system at sea, data firm Refinitiv shared an analysis with the AP showing that more than 300 vessels remained en route to the waterway over the next two weeks.
Some ships could still change course, but the sinking of ships listing the Suez Canal as a destination demonstrates that an even greater backlog is being achieved for shippers who are already under pressure amid the coronavirus pandemic.