Hundreds of ships have FINALLY started moving through the Suez Canal – but the backlog will take days to clear and cost billions more.
Suez Canal Authority chairman Osama Rabie has said the agency expects 140 ships to go through the canal today.
More than 100 vessels have already passed through since the Ever Given was freed, according to Reuters.and the backlog of more than 400 boats should be cleared within the next “three to four days”.
The average number of vessels passing through the canal each day remains at 93 – which is why hundreds of ships are still trapped in a bottleneck despite the Ever Given being freed.
At least 369 vessels were waiting – and many still are – to transit the canal, including dozens of container ships, bulk carriers and oil and gas tankers.
Some ships had decided to reroute their cargoes around the Cape of Good Hope, adding about two weeks to journeys and extra fuel costs.
Crude oil prices fell after news the ship had been refloated with Brent crude down by $1 per barrel to $63.67.
Follow our live blog below for all the latest Suez Canal news and updates…
- Alice Peacock
140 SHIPS TO PASS THROUGH CANAL TODAY
Suez Canal Authority chairman Osama Rabie has said the agency expects 140 ships to go through the canal today.
More than 100 vessels had passed through since the Ever Given was freed, according to Reuters.
Rabie added that he hoped the backup of vessels on the canal could be cleared in three to four days.
- Alice Peacock
FULL STEAM AHEAD FOR BOATS FREED FROM TRAFFIC JAM
After nearly a week blocking the Suez Canal, the container ship "Ever Given" was finally freed by salvage teams.
It unblocked the vital shipping lane and allowed the backlog of vessels waiting at either end to begin transiting the canal.
Ships have begun transiting the canal once, more, following the mega traffic jam last week - Alice Peacock
JAM SHOULD BE CLEARED WITHIN NEXT ‘THREE TO FOUR DAYS’
A backlog of more than 400 boats should be cleared within the next “three to four days”, the Suez Canal Authority has said.
The average number of vessels passing through the canal each day is 93 – which is why hundreds of ships are currently trapped around the stuck Ever Given.
Some 19,000 vessels passed through the canal last year, according to official figures.
- Alice Peacock
43 VESSELS STUCK IN BACKLOG HAVE RESUMED TRANSIT
At least 43 vessels have resumed transit so far from the Great Bitter Lake today, which separates two sections of the canal.
The huge traffic jam involves hundreds of ships, which were stuck when the Ever Given ran aground in the Suez Canal on 23 March.
Earlier today Suez Canal Authority chairman Osama Rabie has said the agency expects 140 ships to go through the canal today.
Rabie added that he hoped the backup of vessels on the canal could be cleared in three to four days.
- Alice Peacock
TRAFFIC RESUMES THROUGH THE SUEZ CANAL
The Suez Canal Authority on 29 March said that traffic is to resume after the large container ship 'Ever Given' was refloated - Alice Peacock
WHO BUILT THE SUEZ CANAL?
The Suez Canal was built by French diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps.
In 1859 Lesseps formed the Suez Canal Company for the purpose of building the canal, aiming to reduce sailing distances between Europe and East Asia.
Its construction took ten years between 1859 and 1869.
The project was completed and officially opened on November 17, 1869.
Lesseps attempted to repeat his success trying to build a Panama Canal in the 1880s but the project was unsuccessful.
- Alice Peacock
INSURANCE INDUSTRY BRACES FOR CLAIMS
The insurance industry is bracing for claims taken out on the containers stacked high on the Ever Given.
Potentially thousands of insurance policies taken out on the steel boxes could result in millions of dollars in payouts, Bloomberg reported.
Taiwan’s Evergreen Line, which chartered the Ever Given, said the ship’s owner, Shoie Kisen Kaisha Ltd, was responsible for any losses.
While the shipowner has taken some responsibility, it has said that charterers needed to deal with the cargo owners.
- Alice Peacock
CONTINUED
Shocking images showed people trapped inside flipped carriages surrounded by twisted metal and debris after one train rammed into the rear of another.
In a further cruel twist, the following day an apartment building collapsed in Cairo – leaving 18 dead.
While many would put this down to a run of unbelievable bad luck, others are blaming an ancient curse believed to be inscribed on Tutankhamun's tomb, which reads "Death will come on quick wings for those who disturb the king’s peace", reports Arab News.
Social media users have been quick to pick up on the legend and believe the planned transfer is to blame for the disasters.
The curse, which is said to not differentiate between thieves and archaeologists, is claimed to cause bad luck, illness or death on anyone who disturbs the mummies of ancient Egypt.
- Alice Peacock
RAMESSES’ REVENGE
A series of unfortunate incidents in Egypt including the Suez Canal chaos and a train crash that killed 32 have been pinned on the so-called curse of the Pharaohs by superstitious social media users.
In the last week, a number of travesties have plagued the country – all since it was announced 22 mummies would be transferred to a new museum, including the remains of King Ramesses II.
Shortly after news of the transfer, a megaship became stuck in the Suez Canal, blocking the major shipping route in both directions for almost a week.
The vital lane finally reopened yesterday after the Ever Given became grounded in the waterway at a perpendicular angle last Tuesday.
Then on Friday, at least 32 were killed and dozens more injured when two passenger trains collided in Tahta, central Egypt.
- Alice Peacock
140 SHIPS TO PASS THROUGH CANAL TODAY
Suez Canal Authority chairman Osama Rabie has said the agency expects 140 ships to go through the canal today.
More than 100 vessels had passed through since the Ever Given was freed, according to Reuters.
Rabie added that he hoped the backup of vessels on the canal could be cleared in three to four days.
- Alice Peacock
JAM SHOULD BE CLEARED WITHIN NEXT ‘THREE TO FOUR DAYS’
A backlog of more than 400 boats should be cleared within the next “three to four days”, the Suez Canal Authority has said.
The average number of vessels passing through the canal each day is 93 – which is why hundreds of ships are currently trapped around the stuck Ever Given.
Some 19,000 vessels passed through the canal last year, according to official figures.
- Alice Peacock
HOW BIG IS THE BACKLOG OF BOATS?
At least 369 vessels were waiting – and many still are – to transit the canal, including dozens of container ships, bulk carriers and oil and gas tankers.
Some ships had decided to reroute their cargoes around the Cape of Good Hope, adding about two weeks to journeys and extra fuel costs.
Crude oil prices fell after news the ship had been refloated with Brent crude down by $1 per barrel to $63.67.
- Alice Peacock
SATELLITE PICTURES FROM SPACE SHOWS MONSTER CARGO SHIP WEDGED IN CANAL
Yesterday, satellite data showed the mega-ship had finally been straightened after its rear end was moved thanks to high tides brought on by a supermoon.
Canal officials said the skyscraper-sized boat had been turned “80 per cent in the right direction” after the stern was shifted with “pulling manoeuvres” that moved it 335ft from the bank.
The megaship was this morning being towed to the middle of the waterway and toward the Great Bitter Lake, a wide stretch of water halfway between the north and south end of the canal.
- Alice Peacock
AND THE SUEZ CANAL GAGS JUST KEEP ON COMING
- Alice Peacock
HOW WAS THE EVER GIVEN FREED?
Rescue crews freed the vessel using tug boats and digging, even as analysts warned the monster vessel may be too heavy for such an operation.
The salvage team dredged beneath the vessel’s bow with high pressure water jets to wrench the ship from the clay, said Berdowski.
Eleven tugboats were helped by several diggers which vacuumed up sand underneath at high tide brought on by a “supermoon”.
- Alice Peacock
FULL STEAM AHEAD ON TWITTER WITH SUEZ CANAL JOKES
- Alice Peacock
140 SHIPS TO PASS THROUGH CANAL TODAY
Suez Canal Authority chairman Osama Rabie has said the agency expects 140 ships to go through the canal today.
More than 100 vessels had passed through since the Ever Given was freed, according to Reuters.
Rabie added that he hoped the backup of vessels on the canal could be cleared in three to four days.
- Alice Peacock
FIRST SHIPS PASS THROUGH SUEZ CANAL AFTER EVER GIVEN FREED
The first cargo ships successfully passed through the Suez Canal yesterday evening. after the Ever Given mega-ship blocking it was finally freed.
Rescuers released the front end of the monster cargo boat at around 4.30am after it was wedged in the vital shipping route for nearly a week.
And long-awaited action was finally recorded in the waterway last night, with ship tracking website Maritime Traffic counting a number of vessels passing through.
A Hong Kong-flagged cargo ship, the “YM Wish,” was the first vessel allowed through and exited the southern end at around 9:15 p.m. EDT in the U.S, The New York Times reports.
It was said to be headed to the Red Sea and Jedda, the Saudi Arabian port city.
- Alice Peacock
SALVAGE CHIEF PRAISES TEAM
The boss of the salvage firm who was given the task of rescuing the Ever Given has praised his workers.
Peter Berdowski, chief executive of Boskalis, said in a statement: “Shortly following the grounding of the Ever Given we were requested through SMIT Salvage to provide assistance with the salvage operation.
“I am excited to announce that our team of experts, working in close collaboration with the Suez Canal Authority, successfully refloated the Ever Given on 29 March at 3.05pm local time, thereby making free passage through the Suez Canal possible again.
“I’m extremely proud of the outstanding job done by the team on site as well as the many SMIT Salvage and Boskalis colleagues back home to complete this challenging operation under the watchful eye of the world.
“The time pressure to complete this operation was evident and unprecedented.”
- Alice Peacock
JAM SHOULD BE CLEARED WITHIN NEXT 'THREE TO FOUR DAYS'
A backlog of more than 400 boats should be cleared within the next "three to four days", the Suez Canal Authority has said.
The average number of vessels passing through the canal each day is 93 – which is why hundreds of ships are currently trapped around the stuck Ever Given.
Some 19,000 vessels passed through the canal last year, according to official figures.
- Alice Peacock
SUEZ CANAL BACK IN BUSINESS TODAY
A bumper maritime traffic jam of more than 400 vessels is now on the move through the Suez Canal.
The traffic jam was caused when the Ever Given, leased by a Taiwan-based shipping company, was jammed diagonally across a section of the canal.
The blockage cut all traffic along the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia – reportedly costing shipping companies millions of dollars in losses each day.
An estimated 15% of the world's shipping traffic passes through the canal. According to the authority the blockage cost it around $15 million a day.
- Alice Peacock
HOW BIG IS THE BACKLOG OF BOATS?
At least 369 vessels were waiting – and many still are – to transit the canal, including dozens of container ships, bulk carriers and oil and gas tankers.
Some ships had decided to reroute their cargoes around the Cape of Good Hope, adding about two weeks to journeys and extra fuel costs.
Crude oil prices fell after news the ship had been refloated with Brent crude down by $1 per barrel to $63.67.
- Alice Peacock
SATELLITE PICTURES FROM SPACE SHOWS MONSTER CARGO SHIP WEDGED IN CANAL
Yesterday, satellite data showed the mega-ship had finally been straightened after its rear end was moved thanks to high tides brought on by a supermoon.
Canal officials said the skyscraper-sized boat had been turned "80 per cent in the right direction" after the stern was shifted with "pulling manoeuvres" that moved it 335ft from the bank.
The megaship was this morning being towed to the middle of the waterway and toward the Great Bitter Lake, a wide stretch of water halfway between the north and south end of the canal.
- Alice Peacock
HOW WAS THE EVER GIVEN FREED?
Rescue crews freed the vessel using tug boats and digging, even as analysts warned the monster vessel may be too heavy for such an operation.
The salvage team dredged beneath the vessel's bow with high pressure water jets to wrench the ship from the clay, said Berdowski.
Eleven tugboats were helped by several diggers which vacuumed up sand underneath at high tide brought on by a "supermoon".
The full moon raises the water level due to its gravitational pull on the earth, canal services firm Leth Agencies said.
- Alice Peacock
FIRST SHIPS PASS THROUGH SUEZ CANAL AFTER EVER GIVEN FREED
The first cargo ships successfully passed through the Suez Canal yesterday evening. after the Ever Given mega-ship blocking it was finally freed.
Rescuers released the front end of the monster cargo boat at around 4.30am after it was wedged in the vital shipping route for nearly a week.
And long-awaited action was finally recorded in the waterway last night, with ship tracking website Maritime Traffic counting a number of vessels passing through.
A Hong Kong-flagged cargo ship, the "YM Wish," was the first vessel allowed through and exited the southern end at around 9:15 p.m. EDT in the U.S, The New York Times reports.
It was said to be headed to the Red Sea and Jedda, the Saudi Arabian port city.
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