The large vessel Ever Given has been locked in the Suez Canal since Tuesday.
The embarrassing sailing problem is blamed on bad weather.
Pictures show a timeline of the establishment of the ship that hit global trade.
See more stories on the Insider business page.
The Ever Given, the large cargo ship stuck in the Suez Canal in Egypt, was launched from Tuesday morning.
The position of the earth could not have been worse: The Suez Canal is a vital but narrow link in many global supply chains, and delays there are reversing around the world.
The Ever Given with its bow stuck in a wall of the Suez Canal.
Suez Canal Authority through AP
Egyptian authorities have been scrambling to dismantle the ship, and – despite one false alarm – have not yet fully recovered.
Tuesday morning: The Ever Given stops
These maps show that the Ever Given took a winding route before entering the canal.
The vessel, which will sail under the Panamanian flag, sailed to Rotterdam, the Netherlands, from the Yantian region of China, according to the Vessel Finder ship find site.
Since its inception to be big news, some have taken to social media to note the unfortunate shape that has followed its path:
A sailor on board another ship, the Maersk MV Denver, later wrote that the Ever Given cut the line ahead of the Denver, as can be seen in this Instagram comment, which was posted to Twitter by someone else :
—🐬👽Ⓐ Radicals are dead Ⓐ👽🐬 (@oveertlyhonest) March 23, 2021
At around 7.40am local time on Tuesday, the cargo ship ran aground.
At nearly 200 feet wide and 1,300 feet long, it easily took over the width of the channel.
The sailor aboard the MV Denver posted this image of the scene:
Post shared by Julianne Cona (@ fellhearts17)
Officers were affected by the storm with high winds and sandstorms. Sandstorms are not uncommon at this time of year in Egypt.
Early reports suggested the ship’s power failed, forcing it to deviate from its course. This was contradicted by the ship’s technical manager Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, who said in a statement to Insider that “initial inspections rule out any mechanical or engine failure as a cause of the foundation.”
A satellite captured a view of the Ever Given from space on Tuesday:
Planet Labs satellite image Tuesday.
Planet Labs through Reuters
Egyptian authorities tried to tow the ship
Eight tugs were involved in trying to tow the ship on Wednesday. A satellite image shows the position of the Ever Given, represented by a green dot, surrounded by some tubs, marked in blue. Size does not relate to scale.
Satellite view as 3.40pm local time Wednesday showing the ever-passing and surrounding traffic.
MarineTraffic.com
Here is a view of one thatched boat, the Baraka 1, in front of the Ever Given, provided by the Suez Canal Authority on Wednesday:
The Ever Given, seen here behind a smaller vessel, went missing on Wednesday.
Suez Canal Authority through AP
Lt. Gen. SCA chairman Osama Rabie spoke to workers on a nearby boat:
Lt. Gen. Ossama Rabei, head of the Suez Canal Authority, second from the right, will speak to other workers on board a boat near the cargo ship on Wednesday.
Suez Canal Authority through AP
‘Bulbous bow’ to blame?
John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab, suggested that the design of the ship’s bow – a large bulbous prong rooted in the canal’s bank – could help explain how it was caught so badly.
In a statement to Insider on Wednesday, Danish shipping company Maersk declared the Suez Canal a “critical” shipping route. They said seven of his vessels were maintained by the blockade.
“Four of them are involved in the canal system while the rest are waiting to enter the corridor,” the statement read.
Satellite images below show the crowd of ships gathering Wednesday as they try to get through from all sides.
Satellite view as 3.40pm local time Wednesday.
MarineTraffic.com
The Suez Canal was refurbished in 2015, when a newer channel was built alongside the one that first opened in 1869.
When opened, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi called it “Egypt’s gift to the world.”
According to Professor Rocky Weitz, director of the Fletcher Marine Studies Program at Tufts University’s Fletcher School, the former channel has given partial relief to the obstruction.
“Vessels were diverted to the older channel to provide some relief to the conventional obstruction,” he told Insider. “But the older channel is smaller, so larger vessels will have to wait for the main channel to reopen.”
The side-by-side satellite images show the waterway in 2014 (left) and 2016 (right), after the latest channel opened:
Left, Suez Canal in 2014, before widening. Okay, the canal in 2016, with the new channel.
Landsat
It was reported that the vessel had been quickly restored
Hope appeared at noon Wednesday. The shipping representative GAC Egypt, citing the SCA, said the vessel was moved “along” the canal bank, meaning it was parallel to the waterway.
“Convoys and traffic are expected to resume as soon as a vessel is towed to a different position,” the news read.
But according to Bloomberg, the SCA did not make such news.
GAC Egypt deputy manager Ahmed Mekawy said the company had received erroneous information, The Independent reported.
The Ever Given must be moved to avoid major impacts
The Suez Canal is vital to global supply chains. According to the Wall Street Journal, 19,000 boats passed through in 2020.
Shipping of goods has come under great pressure in the pandemic, with major difficulties in modernizing crews or servicing vessels, as Insider said. The positioning of the Ever Given could throw another string into the works.
Weitz, the marine expert, said the costs and delays accumulated so far are relatively small, but a much longer delay could be detrimental.
“If the hurdle continues for a week or longer, we will begin to see major ripple effects across supply chains – especially for European refiners who rely on a shrinking volume of crude oil. over the Suez Canal by tanker, “he told Insider.
Oil prices rose 4% after the foundation, Markets Insider said.
Satellite view as 3.40pm local time Wednesday.
MarineTraffic.com
No one knows when the canal will reopen
Prior to GAC making Egypt’s mistake about refurbishing the ship, it had not estimated how fast the vessel could be moved.
“There is currently no indication of when the Canal will be clear and it will be able to resume referrals,” he said in a statement on Wednesday.
An Egyptian official, speaking on condition of anonymity with the Associated Press, expected the work to take until at least Friday.
