The mega-container ship, the Ever Given, a ship the size of a skyscraper, has been partially refloated from the canal bank and floor, raising the possibility that the Suez Canal could be clear soon to allow general traffic, the Associated Press reports, even as the ominous inevitability of high tide receding looms.
The Ever Given became lodge in the canal, reportedly after it lost power and drifted sideways in the waterway, lodging itself across the width of the canal and blocking shipping traffic. Approximately 300 ships are awaiting the ship’s clearance so they can transit the canal. Dozens more had already set off the round the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa.
Using a combination of dredgers to vacuum up soil under the ship and tugboats to maneuver the cargo ship, engineers were able to get enough clearance to partially refloat the ship. They may still need to remove some of the ship’s 20,000 containers to safely refloat the boat and get it back safely in the water.