# 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:** 9
**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 25, 2021, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/162 "2021-03-25T14:54:02Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > What are the operating costs for five days at sea, and how do they compare to the cost of fees for using the canal? That’s a good question. Is it a time equals money situation or is the $700K offset by fuel and operating expenses? I used to bring in containers from a company in Poland and I could get a quote for delivery in 30 days for $2000 or 45 days for $1500 (Hamburg to Tacoma, Oakland, or Los Angeles). The quick/expensive route was through the Panama Canal. The cheaper/slow route was across the Pacific after making ports of call in Asia. I don’t remember if those ships used Suez or if they went around Africa. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/163 "2021-03-25T15:04:35Z")
> [@GreenWyvern](#): > > The Ever Given is bound for Rotterdam The Ever Green is bound. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/164 "2021-03-25T15:24:22Z")
I haven’t seen this pic posted. If I missed it, my bad. [[Album] imgur.com ![](https://i.imgur.com/TO4KKj4.png?fb "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/a/PHQNO5U) ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/165 "2021-03-25T15:25:43Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > > [@GreenWyvern](#): > > > > The Ever Given is bound for Rotterdam > > The Ever Green is bound. The ship is called Ever Given. The shipping company is Evergreen. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/166 "2021-03-25T15:27:55Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > They could get more fuel if they wanted to. I wonder if food is an issue, too. There may be only enough food meant for the intended voyage, and not enough for the crew to eat during the extended backlog wait PLUS the remainder of the voyage. (The crews of the many ships waiting on both sides of the Suez.) Speaking of which, where is the trapped ship’s crew? Are they all still aboard? ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/167 "2021-03-25T15:39:35Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > I wonder if food is an issue, too. There may be only enough food meant for the intended voyage, and not enough for the crew to eat during the extended backlog wait PLUS the remainder of the voyage. (The crews of the many ships waiting on both sides of the Suez.) Hello, Uber Eats? I want to place an order. No, I don’t know the address." ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/168 "2021-03-25T15:39:37Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > > [@GreenWyvern](#): > > > > The Ever Given is bound for Rotterdam > > The Ever Green is bound. > [@Velocity](#): > > The ship is called Ever Given. The shipping company is Evergreen. [And things can get rotten in Rotterdam](https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55735980). 😉 ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/169 "2021-03-25T15:42:04Z")
Satellite image from WashPo: [![](https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-stat/graphics/ai2html/suez-satellite/ZNPWVXH5ONE3NDRVKG3PJZBXLI/satellite-map-large.jpg?v=7) ](https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-stat/graphics/ai2html/suez-satellite/ZNPWVXH5ONE3NDRVKG3PJZBXLI/satellite-map-large.jpg?v=7) It’s blowing my mind that the Suez canal is just a big ditch. I guess I had never seen any pictures of it. I was expecting something more like the panama canal. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/170 "2021-03-25T15:53:00Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > What are the operating costs for five days at sea, and how do they compare to the cost of fees for using the canal? There’s that, but a longer journey is less valuable for customers (i.e. less revenue per trip), and fewer trips per year also means less revenue per year. The toll for container ships passing through the canal can be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, and as we’ve seen in this thread, there’s no shortage of willing customers. > [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > It’s blowing my mind that the Suez canal is just a big ditch. I guess I had never seen any pictures of it. I was expecting something more like the panama canal. FWIW there are long stretches of the Panama canal that are just big ditches also. The parts most often seen in photos/videos are the locks for raising/lowering ships, which if course feature plenty of concrete and machinery. The Suez doesn’t raise or lower boats to get across the terrain, so it has no locks at all and can be sandy shores for its entire length. ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/171 "2021-03-25T16:17:26Z")
I thought one of the reasons the Suez was a preferred route was because the sea weather around the Cape of Good is notoriously bad. Wasn’t that part of the premise of the Flying Dutchman legend, that he was trying to round the Cape when a storm came up and he swore that he’d round the Cape if it took him until Doomsday, so now he’s cursed to sail forever? ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/172 "2021-03-25T16:24:16Z")
Here’s a wind load calculator for you. > **[Wind Load vs. Wind Speed](https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/wind-load-d_1775.html)** > > Wind load on surface - Wind load calculator. Concerning units, think of force as just force not force per second. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/173 "2021-03-25T16:25:37Z")
> [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > It’s blowing my mind that the Suez canal is just a big ditch. I guess I had never seen any pictures of it. I was expecting something more like the panama canal. Yeah, one reason it could be constructed in 1869 was it was basically just a ditch dug at sea level (albeit a big ditch that took 10 years to dig). The guy who masterminded it (Ferdinand De Lesseps) later tried to dig a Panama Canal in the 1880’s at ‘sea level’ (i.e., without locks)…and failed miserably with a large loss of life due to disease. It was 20+ years later than the US Canal (with locks) was built. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/174 "2021-03-25T16:39:51Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > They used a technique called parbuckling. it took _months_ to build the structure to hold all the cranes in place. Covered by Drachinifel in three parts a few months ago. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/bB-V9cCSC8o/maxresdefault.jpg "The Salvage of Pearl Harbor Pt 1 - The Smoke Clears") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bB-V9cCSC8o) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/DlLCe1WNaIE/maxresdefault.jpg "The Salvage of Pearl Harbor Pt 2 - Up She Rises!") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlLCe1WNaIE) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/eibt2gYuFD4/maxresdefault.jpg "The Salvage of Pearl Harbor Pt 3 - The First and the Last") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eibt2gYuFD4) ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/175 "2021-03-25T17:49:25Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > > [@Princhester](#): > > > > They could get more fuel if they wanted to. > > I wonder if food is an issue, too. There may be only enough food meant for the intended voyage, and not enough for the crew to eat during the extended backlog wait PLUS the remainder of the voyage. (The crews of the many ships waiting on both sides of the Suez.) > > Speaking of which, where is the trapped ship’s crew? Are they all still aboard? I don’t know why they wouldn’t be. It can’t move but it’s not dead. Those giant ships have a relatively small crew. This one has 25. I worked for Hapag-Lloyd a lifetime ago. Most of our ships had German officers and Filipino crew. The Ever Given has an Indian crew but I haven’t seen who the officers are. There were two Egyptian pilots on board so they were most likely doing the actual steering. One thing that confuses me is that I’ve seen reports that the ship is owned by a Japanese company. Evergreen is a Taiwanese company. I have no idea what kind of business arrangement that is. I wasn’t involved in that part of the business. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/176 "2021-03-25T17:49:27Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > I haven’t seen this pic posted. If I missed it, my bad. > > [Imgur: The magic of the Internet](https://imgur.com/a/PHQNO5U) MUST. **PUSH**. **HARDER.** ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/177 "2021-03-25T18:05:28Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > The ship is called Ever Given. The shipping company is Evergreen. Thank you. More sleep-Less coffee. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/178 "2021-03-25T18:23:21Z")
> [@Morgyn](#): > > They did, in 2014 to 2015. The old one is now being used to divert traffic to while the new one is blocked by the Ever Given. > [Suez Canal Area Development Project - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suez_Canal_Area_Development_Project#Progress) Note that all the work shown in that article is at the north end of the canal. _Ever Given_ is barely inside the south end. Re the picture posted by Wolfpup (#98): I wonder how deeply imbedded the bow is in the side of the canal… ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/179 "2021-03-25T18:30:35Z")
Newest headline from the link provided in the OP: \*\* Suez saga day 3: Ever Given rescue mission underway but Suez Canal may remain closed for weeks\*\* ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/180 "2021-03-25T18:36:19Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > There were 5 in front and 15 lined up behind it when the power went off. They all go at once, and I think that’s the total traffic for the day, with presumably another 20-30 daily in the convoy going the other direction at some other time. Somewhere in one of the articles I looked at whilst reading this thread said that the 2020 average was 51.5 ships per day. The first southbound convoy starts shortly after midnight and goes to the Great Bitter Lake, where the ships pull to one side and anchor until the northbound ships have passed; they then continue on south. The northbound convoy starts a few hours later and goes straight through to the Med. The second southbound convoy starts a few hours after the northbound convoy does, and the two pass in the two-lane section of the canal. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516/181 "2021-03-25T18:38:58Z")
I wonder how many fake internet stores will use this incident as an excuse for “late”(aka nonexistent) shipments? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-suez-canal-blocked-by-a-mega-sized-container-vessel-cleared/938516.md?page=10)