# Breaking News: Suez Canal blocked by a mega-sized container vessel \[Cleared\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 23, 2021, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516 "2021-03-23T21:52:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 18
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/343 "2021-03-29T05:00:51Z")
> [@gkster](#): > > So what does “being secured” mean? They’ll secure the ship at the side of the canal and check it out and let other ships go by? As I recall, it was refloated (or maybe partially refloated) at 4:30 am local time. Probably they want to wait for daylight to inspect things before trying to move it out of the way. In the meantime, they tie it down tight to make sure it doesn’t drift or get blown into a bad position again. (Just a guess - I am not a salvage engineer) ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/344 "2021-03-29T05:10:18Z")
Reuters says "Video posted on social media appeared to show the ship’s stern had swung around, opening space in the canal. Other footage, which could not be immediately verified by Reuters, included cheering and ships’ horns sounding in celebration. Ship-tracking service VesselFinder has changed the ship’s status to under way on its website." > **[Traffic in Suez Canal resumes after stranded ship refloated](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-egypt-suezcanal-ship/stranded-suez-canal-ship-re-floated-inchcape-idUSKBN2BL0A3?il=0)** > > Shipping was on the move again late on Monday in Egypt's Suez Canal after tugs refloated a giant container ship which had been blocking the channel for almost a week, causing a huge build-up of vessels around the waterway. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/345 "2021-03-29T05:23:25Z")
I’m not at all sure it is totally free yet. Many reports seem to be saying “partially” refloated, and my experience says the more cautious reports are more likely to be true. Having said that, IME, with the stern free it’s highly likely the bow will come free reasonably soon if it hasn’t already. Once you can wiggle the ship, a refloat is usually (not always) imminent. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/346 "2021-03-29T05:44:22Z")
_ **The bow is still solidly aground** _, but they have freed the stern and pivoted the ship a little. Short update video from Prof. Sal Mercogliano: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/LCsaC-aM5cw/maxresdefault.jpg "MV Ever Given - What is Up in the Suez, Part 6 - SHE IS AFLOAT, BUT STILL AGROUND FOWARD") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCsaC-aM5cw) ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/347 "2021-03-29T08:32:58Z")
> “Don’t cheer too soon,” Peter Berdowski, CEO of Boskalis, the salvage firm hired to extract the Ever Given, told Dutch NPO Radio 1. “The good news is that the stern is free but we saw that as the simplest part of the job.” > > The toughest challenge remained at the front of the ship, he added. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 9:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/348 "2021-03-29T09:39:28Z")
Suez Canal Container Ship Is Partially Freed [Ship Stuck in the Suez Canal Is Freed - WSJ](https://www.wsj.com/articles/ship-blocking-suez-canal-is-partially-freed-11616989503) No doubt paylocked. But it says they are hopeful they can free it at high tide, around noon local time. ---
**Author:** ![tofor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tofor/32/13727_2.png) [@tofor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tofor)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/349 "2021-03-29T09:46:01Z")
I don’t think this has been posted yet. At this website you can get live tracking of the Evergiven and see what boats are helping with the salvage. You can watch the various boats move around almost in real time. > **[EVER GIVEN Current Position (Cargo A, MMSI: 353136000, IMO: 9811000) -...](https://www.myshiptracking.com/?mmsi=353136000)** > > Real-time and current position of EVER GIVEN (Cargo A, MMSI: 353136000, IMO: 9811000) on ais live map is in North Sea with coordinates 54.15832° / 7.45864° and speed 10.3 knots as reported on 2023-02-03 19:01 by AIS live data. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/350 "2021-03-29T10:03:30Z")
[VesselFinder](https://www.vesselfinder.com/?imo=9811000) does the same. One site may have some info that the other doesn’t, but there’s a big overlap. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/351 "2021-03-29T10:13:42Z")
Partial freed also means partially stuck. Don’t expect the Egyptian authorities to put anything but a positive spin on the progress of the operation. Hopefully however they will manage to fully free it very soon. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/352 "2021-03-29T11:04:18Z")
On the live sites, it looks to me like they’re swinging her stern first one way then the other. Makes sense. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/353 "2021-03-29T11:52:40Z")
Yeah, but we are already past noon in Egypt, which is when they hoped to have freed the ship, due to high tides. > **[Tide Times and Tide Chart for Suez](https://www.tide-forecast.com/locations/Suez-Egypt/tides/latest)** > > Suez tide times and tide charts showing high tide and low tide heights and accurate times out to 30 days. ---
**Author:** ![tofor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tofor/32/13727_2.png) [@tofor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tofor)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/354 "2021-03-29T13:23:30Z")
It looks like it’s off on the live trackers. It’s moving at 2.3 knots straight up the canal. ---
**Author:** ![ctnguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@ctnguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ctnguy)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/355 "2021-03-29T13:27:56Z")
The BBC is now saying it’s been freed. > **[Suez Canal reopens after giant stranded ship is freed](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-56567985)** > > It took almost a week to dislodge a giant container ship blocking one the world's busiest trade routes. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/356 "2021-03-29T13:47:11Z")
[![](https://english.ahram.org.eg/Media/News/2021/3/29/2021-637526289704385286-438.jpg) ](https://english.ahram.org.eg/Media/News/2021/3/29/2021-637526289704385286-438.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/357 "2021-03-29T13:56:56Z")
Well, some people posting authoritatively in this thread in the last 24 hours were… not correct. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/358 "2021-03-29T14:00:56Z")
Cite? I don’t recall anyone “authoritatively” posting that it would not be freed now. I see some people advising caution about how soon it might happen, and others pointing out problems with suggested solutions. As it turns out, in this case the caution wasn’t needed and nor were more extreme methods. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/359 "2021-03-29T14:07:06Z")
Are the towing it out (south) by the stern? ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/360 "2021-03-29T14:07:49Z")
No, they are towing her north. I think that photo must have been taken just after she broke free, before the tow cable at her stern was cast off. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/361 "2021-03-29T14:08:31Z")
So she did a 180 during this whole event? ETA - I posted before edit above clarified it. ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2021, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/362 "2021-03-29T14:12:23Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > Cite? I don’t recall anyone “authoritatively” posting that it would not be freed now. > [@Velocity](#): > > Time for everyone to go the long way around Africa. > [@LSLGuy](#): > > Given the reality that underwater dredging in sand doesn’t leave vertical sides, you need to remove (major WAG) 3x that much material to end up with a shallow-sided trench that’s deep, wide, and long enough at the bottom to float the ship. So now they’re closer to just 10% of the way done. > [@GreenWyvern](#): > > So probably no short-term solution. > > The ship must have rammed the bank with tremendous force. Imagine all that weight travelling at about 12kn and then shopped short when it hit the bank. If the bow rode up on a mass of rock, it’s not going to be easy to free it. Your definition of “authoritatively” may vary, of course. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516.md?page=17) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516.md?page=19)