Efforts to refloat the Ever Given resumed at high tide on Thursday, with five tugs busy towing the ship to deeper water, according to ship tracking data.
The container ship – which is almost as long as the Empire State Building is tall – ran aground on Tuesday after being caught in a 40-knot wind and a sandstorm that caused poor visibility and poor navigation, the Suez Canal Authority said on Wednesday. a statement. .
The huge ship, which is 400 meters long and 59 meters wide, continues to block transit in both directions through the main shipping channel.
The largest container shipping company in the world, Maersk, said on Wednesday that seven of its container ships have been hit.
Four of the ships are trapped in the nearby canal system while the rest wait to enter the passage, the Danish company said in a statement.
“Maersk is constantly monitoring the current situation in the Suez Canal and is closely monitoring the efforts of the affected vessel to refloat. Authority (SCA), ” the statement added.
Marine service provider GAC gave customers a note overnight stating that efforts to free the ship with tugs were continuing, but that wind conditions and the sheer size of the ship “hindered the operation.”
Ship tracking software shows five tugs surrounding Ever Given and three more heading towards it. However, the vessel’s GPS signal shows only minor changes in its position in the last 24 hours.
Several dozen ships, including other large container ships, tankers carrying oil and gas, and bulk carriers carrying grain, have backed up at both ends of the canal to cause one of the worst shipping congestion in years.
About 30% of the global shipping container volume passes through the 193 km long Suez Canal every day and about 12% of the total world trade of all goods.
Shipping experts say if the blockade is unlikely to be cleared within the next 24 to 48 hours, some shipping companies may be forced to divert ships around the southernmost tip of Africa, adding about a week to the journey.
But the chairman of the Suez Canal Authority told the media that despite the blockage, some of the cargo could go south and that efforts to dislodge Ever Given would continue.