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Ever Given ship refloated after blocking waterway for six days

An Egyptian and international salvaging team has succeeded in partially freeing a vast container ship that had become stuck on the banks of the Suez canal for six days.

Holding up tens of billions of dollars’ worth of global trade, the Ever Given ship has reflected after blocking waterway for six days.

The reports that the ship had been freed raised hopes that traffic along the canal could resume within hours, clearing the way for an estimated $9.6bn (£7bn) of goods that is being held up each day.

Rescue workers from the authority and the Dutch company Smit Salvage used tug boats to wrench the ship from the canal bank, Reuters news agency reported.

The stern of the ship, which had been four metres from the shore, was now 102m clear, the Suez Canal Authority said. It added that efforts to fully refloat the boat had begun.

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The 200,000-tonne Ever Given ran aground on Tuesday morning amid high winds and a sandstorm that affected visibility. Specialist salvage companies were brought in to help refloat the ship.

A video showed the stern of the gigantic Ever Given ship swing towards the canal bank, with voices heard shouting “praise be to God” and “God is great” in celebration as tug boats moved around it.

Local sources told Reuters news agency it had been straightened and returned to “normal course”, although it remains stuck currently
Hundreds of other vessels remained trapped in the canal waiting to pass, carrying everything from crude oil to cattle.

 

 

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