FILE - In this Aug. 6, 2015 file photo, an army zodiac secures the entrance of the new section of the Suez Canal in Ismailia, Egypt. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File)
A bulk carrier vessel became wedged Thursday in Egypt’s Suez Canal, briefly blocking traffic in one lane of crucial global waterway, Egyptian authorities said.
The Suez Canal Authority said in a statement that the Panama-flagged Coral Crystal ran aground in a double-lane stretch of the canal, forcing the officials to redirect other vessels in the convoy to the other lane.
It said the canal’s tugboats managed to float the south-bound vessel, which carries cargo weighing 43,000 tons. The Coral Crystal then resumed its voyage, the canal said.
Officials have not said what caused the vessel to run aground.
The ship was built in 2012 with a length of nearly 225 meters (738 feet) and a width of over 32 meters (104 feet). It was en route to Port Sudan on the Red Sea, according to Traffic Marine, a vessel tracking firm.
Thursday’s incident came less than six months after the massive Panama-flagged Ever Given ran aground in the single-lane stretch of the canal. The hulking vessel blocked the canal for six days before being released in a massive salvage effort by a flotilla of tugboats.
The blockage earlier this year disrupted global shipment. About 10% of world trade flows through the canal, a pivotal source of foreign currency to Egypt. Some 19,000 vessels passed through the canal last year, according to official figures.
In this March 28, 2021 photo, released by the Suez Canal Authority, tug boats and diggers work to free the Panama-flagged, Japanese-owned Ever Given, which is lodged across the Suez Canal. (Suez Canal Authority via AP, File)
Johann Kerbrat, VP and General Manager at Robinhood joins Cheddar to discuss Bitcoin's recent rise and how the company got into election betting. Watch!
Guy Diedrich, SVP and Global Innovation Officer at Cisco joined Cheddar to discuss how our digital diets impact our well being & an upcoming study to prove it!
With the election behind us, many are wondering what the next four years look like for the US economy. Drew Pettit, from Citi Group joins Cheddar to discuss.
Jeff Ostrowski, Mortgage & Housing Analyst at Bankrate, discusses mortgage rates in America and how the housing market will change under a second Trump term.
The NAACP has entered the VC space with a new fund that will invest in startups and fund managers that are focused on closing gaps facing communities of color.
