Ever Given, a container ship weighing more than 200,000 tons, is trapped in the Suez Canal, interrupting traffic on one of the main waterways in the world.
Authorities worked throughout Wednesday to dislodge the freighter, but he remains firmly trapped while ship traffic is piling up on both sides of the canal.
Always given towers over ground machines
In this photo released by the Suez Canal Authority, a cargo ship, called Ever Given, is sitting with the bow attached to the wall on Wednesday, March 24, 2021, after turning sideways in Egypt’s Suez Canal, blocking traffic at a crucial point. West waterway for global maritime transport.
Suez Canal Authority | AP
In one image, Semper Dado makes a piece of heavy machinery and two workers on one side of the canal dwarfs. The bow of the ship is seen touching the eastern wall of the canal.
Taiwan-based Evergreen Marine Corp. operator said in a statement that Ever Given ran aground, driven by strong winds as it entered the Suez Canal from the Red Sea.
The trapped spaceship seen from space
Cropped satellite images captured on March 23, 2021 show the container ship Ever Given blocking the Suez Canal in Egypt.
Planet Labs
Satellite images show the difficulty in dislodging the ship from the narrow channel. Ever Given is more than 1,300 feet long and about 193 feet wide.
One of the tugs deployed on site
In this photo released by the Suez Canal Authority, a boat sails in front of a huge cargo ship, called Ever Given, to the rear, is stranded on Wednesday, March 24, 2021, after turning sideways in the Suez Canal of the Egypt, blocking crucial east-west waterway traffic for global maritime transport.
Suez Canal Authority | AP
A tug is seen alongside the ship while authorities were trying to start the reflow process, which can take days.
On-site staff discuss options
In this photo released by the Suez Canal Authority, Lieutenant General Ossama Rabei, head of the Suez Canal Authority, second on the right, speaks to other personnel on board a boat near the freighter Ever Dado on Wednesday, 24 March 2021, after he was trapped in Egypt’s Suez Canal and blocked all traffic on the vital channel.
Authority of the Suez Canal via AP
Officials from the Suez Canal Authority talk to the team on board a boat near the cargo ship housed.
The Suez Canal is a busy channel
Container ship RDO Concord sails the Suez Canal as Egypt celebrates the 150th anniversary of the opening of the canal in Ismailia, Egypt, on 17 November 2019.
Mohamed Abd El Ghany | Reuters
More than 50 ships pass through the Suez Canal every day, transporting everything from consumer products to machine parts and oil to the entire world.
The channel connects goods from distant corners of the world
The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln approaches Mubarak’s Bridge of Peace while traveling through the Suez Canal in Egypt on May 9, 2019. Photo taken on May 9, 2019.
Dan Snow | US Navy | Reuters
The construction of the artificial canal began in 1859. In 2014, the Egyptian government initiated a multi-billion dollar renovation. The expanded waterway was inaugurated in 2015.