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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
World
Alan Johnson

Ship runs aground in Suez Canal as tugboats race to clear busy shipping lane

A ship ran aground in Egypt's Suez Canal, sparking fears of a blockage in one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.

Leth Shipping Agency reported that tugboats were at the scene in a bid to refloat it, with four other vessels already stuck behind it.

According to MarineTraffic, the ship has been identified as 13-year old Xin Hai Tong 23, a 189m-long bulk carrier sailing under the flag of Hong Kong.

The canal, which is just 200m wide at its narrowest point runs between Port Said in the Mediterranean Sea and Suez in the Red Sea.

Around 30% of the world's shipping container volume passes through the canal and a staggering 12% of total global trade.

Xin Hai Tong 23 is a 189m-long bulk carrier (Marine Traffic)

Authorities later said they were able to refloat the vessel after it momentarily disrupted the waterway.

Over two hours after it was stopped, Leth said they were able to refloat it.

Egyptian authorities did not immediately acknowledge the ship running aground. It wasn't immediately clear what affect the grounding would have on traffic in the canal, which connects the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.

However, tracking data showed no shipping vessels moving around that area of the canal when the ship was stuck.

A ship has run aground in the Suez Canal (Marine Traffic)

Tracking data showed the vessel, describing its condition as "not under command." Tug boats surrounded it to get it refloated.

The ship is a bulk carrier, which typically carries cargo. The ship measures some 190 meters (625 feet) by 32 meters (105 feet).

It comes just over two years after the 400-metre long Ever Given became jammed diagonally across a southern section of the canal in high winds for six days, halting shipping traffic on what is the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia.

More than 20,000 tonnes of sand had to be removed by dredgers, while 14 tugboats were deployed to use high tides to shift the Japanese-owned ship.

An aerial view of the southern entrance of the Suez Canal (AFP/Getty Images)

At the time it was estimated by Lloyd's List that the stranded vessel was holding up $400m an hour in trade.

Peter Berdowski, boss of the salvage firm Boskalis who were tasked with shifting the ship, praised the "unprecedented" pressure his team had been working under after it was feared it would be stuck on the banks of the canal for weeks.

Mr Berdowski said: "I am excited to announce that our team of experts, working in close collaboration with the Suez Canal Authority, successfully refloated the Ever Given on 29 March at 3.05pm local time (2.05pm UK time), thereby making free passage through the Suez Canal possible again."

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