MOSCOW – The Ever Given container ship that has been blocking the Suez Canal has now been freed, reported the Sputnik news agency, quoting an announcement from maritime services provider Inchcape Shipping.
“The MV Ever Given was successfully refloated at 04:30 lt 29/03/2021. She is being secured at the moment. More information about next steps will follow once they are known,” Inchcape said on Twitter this morning.
Bloomberg reported today that although salvage crews had managed to get the ship moving, it was yet unclear how soon the Suez Canal would be open to traffic.
The Ever Given has been stuck in the Suez Canal since Tuesday, when it ran aground on its way from China to the Netherlands. Several attempts had been made to move it.
A Sputnik correspondent reported yesterday that the blockage of the Suez Canal by the Ever Given container ship was causing a traffic jam of vessels that could be seen 65km from the canal’s southern entrance in the Red Sea.
Osama Rabie, the head of the Suez Canal Authority, said yesterday that 369 vessels were waiting to pass through. – Bernama, March 29, 2021
