Source says Ever Given blocks Suez Canal again

The Ever Given vessel again blocked the Suez Canal due to strong winds, a source told RIA Novosti.

It is noted that the container ship should be towed in an hour. According to another source, such an attempt will be made in the late afternoon, when the tide begins.

“The ship returned to the same position again due to the wind, but the situation is not as difficult as at the beginning”, – a source in the canal administration said.

A 400-meter-long container ship with a carrying capacity of about 224 thousand tons was heading from China to Rotterdam and on Tuesday ran aground at the 151th kilometer of the canal, blocking traffic on it. Because of this, a traffic jam has formed in the fairway, several hundred ships are awaiting passage. On Monday, maritime service provider Inchcape Shipping said the ship had been freed.

The Suez Canal is one of the busiest sea trade routes in the world, its length is 160 kilometers, width – up to 250 meters, depth – up to 20. It connects the Mediterranean and Red Seas and allows water transport to pass in both directions between Europe and Asia without bending Africa (about 50 ships per day). The blocking of the channel cost the global economy nearly $10 billion a day, according to Bloomberg.