a According to Reuters Today they continue to deliver the 400-meter-long container ship that crossed the Suez Canal on Tuesday morning, resulting in a halt in cargo traffic on the main waterway between East and West. The problem was originally due to high winds and dust storms, and the container ship lost control and thus managed to cross the canal.
A ship called Ever Given now blocks freight traffic in both directions, although the canal is one of the world’s busiest shipping routes, linking Asia to Europe. According to the official statement, the rescue operation will continue today, but conditions will be exacerbated by the high winds and the fact that the container ship waiting to be rescued is one of the largest ships in the world.
According to an article published by Reuters, nearly 30% of the world’s container traffic is handled on the 193 km-long canal daily, and 12% of the world’s total freight traffic. Shipping experts say that if they can’t clear the canal within the next 24-48 hours, shipping companies will need to find another route that can increase shipping for another week.
a An article by Quartz He points out, however, that this could be much worse: in 1967, 14 cargo ships crossed the Suez Canal when the Six Day War broke out between Israel and the neighboring Arab countries (Jordan, Egypt, Syria), and it became a war zone. . Egyptian authorities instructed ship crews to dock in the widest part of the canal. Although the war lasted only six days, the ships remained there for eight years.
The shipwreck was called the Yellow Fleet, referring to the desert sands that eventually encompassed ships while they were sitting in the siege. They were in a rather bad place, at the wrong time: During the Israeli offensive, Israel controlled the east bank of the canal, while Egypt held the west. After the war ended, Egypt closed the canal to prevent Israel from using it, using rubble, old ships and mines.
After three difficult months, the ships’ original crew members were finally released, but the shipping companies did not want to leave the ships there unattended, so aid crews took turns taking care of the ships while forming their own international community, the Great Bitter Lake Society (Great Bitter Lake is wider Point in the canal, where the boats dock).
Cover photo: Ahmed Shaker / Image Alliance via Getty Images
