Rare “traffic jam” in the Suez Canal: Ship immobilized vertically and closed the passage

The Suez Canal in Egypt has been closed for several hours as a large container ship went out of control and immobilized almost vertically, causing the blockage of many more ships waiting to pass.

Although tugs rushed to help the 1312-foot-long and 59-meter-wide “Ever Given” make the necessary maneuvers, there are fears, according to the BBC, that the ship would be trapped sideways for days.

The incident happened north of the port of Suez early Tuesday, blocking the water “corridor” that connects the Mediterranean with the Red Sea, which is also the shortest sea route between Asia and Europe.

The Panama-flagged “Ever Given” had sailed from China to Rotterdam and was crossing the canal to reach the Mediterranean.

With its immobilization, the passage was effectively closed, as a result of which dozens of other ships, which are now trapped, were immobilized while waiting.

The ship-owning company Evergreen Marine announced that the ship probably received a sudden and very strong wind, as a result of which it deviated from its course, leaned on the shallows and came to a standstill, as broadcast by Reuters.

The photo was taken by another container ship, the Maersk Denver, which was right behind the “Ever Given”.

As historian Dr Sal Mercogliano told the British Network, such incidents are rare but can cause huge complications for world trade.

“This is the largest ship ever stopped in the Suez Canal” He stressed, adding that if the competent services do not manage to unblock it in the flood, they should start removing its load.

A similar incident occurred in 2017, when a Japanese transport ship ran aground after mechanical problems. The Egyptian authorities used tugs and managed to bring it back after a few hours.