Cargo ship blocks all traffic in Suez Canal
A 93,000-tonne cargo ship blocked the Suez Canal today, stopping all transit on the waterway between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, a Suez Canal Authority official said.
Four tugs have been sent to re-align the Hong Kong-flagged Okal King Dor, which drifted at a right-angle to the canal about six miles south of the midway city of Ismailiya, the official said.
The ship was travelling north during a sandstorm when the incident happened at about 11am (9am Irish time), the official said. It was not immediately clear what caused the ship to turn sideways in the canal, but the official said the high wind was a factor.
About 7.5% of world sea trade passes through the canal, which is 120 miles long and 330 yards wide at its narrowest, according to the Canal Authority.
The ships pass in convoys that take 12 hours to make the journey.
