Six days ago, a cargo ship had single-handedly brought one of the world's busiest trade routes to its knees. The 400m-long and 59m-wide MV Ever Given had gotten wedged sideways in a narrow stretch of the canal, effectively creating a traffic jam of vessels.
And while tugboats pulled and heavy machinery on the embankment attempt to heft it out - for nearly a week, the skyscraper-sized container ship defied all efforts. But as time passed, shipping companies and officials began to grow worried. Not only did the Ever Give have about 200 ships waiting behind it, this was also causing billions of dollars worth of loss on a daily basis.
Now, the ship appears be finally be unstuck. As per reports, the gigantic ship has been freed by salvage crews. An earlier update had said that the Dutch-flagged Alp Guard, a specialist tugboat, had arrived at the location on Sunday, The Italian-flagged tugboat Carlo Magno had also been close, having reached the Red Sea near the city of Suez early Sunday.
However, it must be mentioned that the route is not yet operational. As per an AP tweet, salvage teams have “partially refloated" the massive ship and it is unclear when the Ever Given would be able to sail onward.
