The Suez Canal resumes waterway operations after historic blockage

For the last week, billions of dollars in maritime commerce came to a halt following the blockage of the Ever Given cargo ship after getting wedged in the canal’s east bank. The accident was caused due to the lack of visibility due to bad weather conditions with a passing dust storm and winds reaching up to 40 knots knocking the cargo ship off course.

Traffic resumes in the Suez Canal after the Ever Given is re-floated, Egypt's Suez Canal Authority chairman says https://t.co/OSOucKWbcG pic.twitter.com/7kQUO2xSZv

— Reuters (@Reuters) March 29, 2021

The 1,312-foot cargo ship was wedged diagonally in the narrow canal causing a massive blockage because the cargo ship is longer than the width of the canal ranging from 205 to 225 feet. The blockage completely halted maritime commerce through the vital canal and the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) deployed a team of tugboats to start pulling Ever Given out of the canal starting Tuesday while working through the weekend.

On Wednesday, the SCA partnered with a renowned maritime rescue company Smit Salvage to assist in getting the Ever Given cargo ship through the canal. The 200,000-ton Ever Given cargo ship with a fleet of 10 tug boats over the span of six days and causing delays for other ships traveling through the canal. The massive rescue effort was also assisted by natural elements with higher tides during the recent and first supermoon of the year.

Egypt's Suez Canal has been blocked by a large container ship that got stuck in the busy waterway, causing a build-up of traffic. https://t.co/zw0zZLr0Eb

— Twitter Moments (@TwitterMoments) March 24, 2021

After a massive six-day rescue effort, the Ever Given cargo ship is finally freed and traffic in the waterway can resume with normal operations. The Suez Canal accounts for approximately 12 percent of the world’s shipping traffic causing disruptions in shipping costing billions of dollars. This isn’t the first time a ship has caused a blockage in the Suez Canal but holds the record for blocking the canal longer than any other cargo ship in history.