Video: Race to unblock the Suez Canal continues
Dredging company says the Ever Given is stuck in the sand and her containers may have to be unloaded, meaning it may be weeks before traffic can transit the Canal again.
Efforts to unblock the Suez Canal continue today after a brief overnight pause, reports the Guardian. The vast 220,000-TEU, 400-metre-long ULCS, Ever Given, is now stuck in the sand at the side of the canal while eight tugs work to free her.
However, Peter Berdowski, CEO of specialist dredging company Boskalis said “it is not really possible to pull it loose” and that the vessel may have to be unloaded, a process that may take weeks.
Berdowski said the ship’s bow and stern had been lifted up against the against the banks of the canal and images of the ship suggested it was sitting heavily on the bank.
Meanwhile, at least 150 ships loaded with oil, automotive parts and consumer goods are waiting to transit the strategic waterway. The ship had two pilots from the Suez Canal Authority aboard when it lost steerage way and hit the sides of the canal.
Bernard Schulte Shipmanagement, the technical managers for the vessel, denied early reports that the vessel lost power mid-channel and have blamed a “sudden gust of wind” for the accident.
