A ship temporarily ran aground in Egypt’s Suez Canal, blocking shipping traffic Wednesday before being refloated.
The blockage occurred nearly a year and a half after the Ever Given container ship ran aground in the same crucial shipping artery, wreaking havoc on global supply lines. While buzz on social media was preparing for another Ever Given-type scenario, the Suez Canal Authority was able to dislodge and refloat the vessel quickly, local media reported. The ship was the Singapore-flagged Affinity V, an oil tanker on its way to the Saudi port of Yanbu from Portugal, according to Egypt Today Magazine.
The ship ran aground due to a problem with its steering system, authorities said.
DEAL REACHED TO FREE MEGATANKER THAT BLOCKED SUEZ CANAL
“The Oil Tanker ‘Affinity’ faced a problem in its steering system that caused it to stuck in the Suez Canal, and blocked the navigational course for a short period, before it was eventually floated,” a Suez Canal Authority spokesman told Egypt Today Magazine.
Unconfirmed pictures, posted by Yeshiva World News reporter Moshe Schwartz, appear to show the ship shortly after it ran aground.
The ship was quickly dislodged by several tugboats, then moved along with their assistance, according to MarineTraffic, a maritime tracking service.
A screen recording of MarineTraffic posted by one user appeared to show that the vessel was grounded for approximately five hours before being dislodged.
The incident occurred just north of Al Shahid Ahmed Hamdy Tunnel Road, north of the city of Suez.
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On March 15, 2021, the Ever Given, one of the largest container ships in the world, ran aground in the canal, blocking shipping traffic for nearly a week. The clog led to astronomical financial losses, as hundreds of ships sat unable to deliver their cargo.
