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Cargo ship blocking traffic in Suez Canal
(AP)
Updated: 2006-02-09 10:16
A 93,000-ton cargo ship drifted at the wrong angle inside the Suez Canal
during a sandstorm Wednesday and blocked all transit on the waterway between the
Mediterranean and the Red Sea, a canal authority official said.
The 230-foot-long Hong Kong-flagged Okal King Dor was traveling north during
the sandstorm when it veered at right angles to the canal about six miles south
of the city of Ismailiya, the official said on condition of anonymity because he
is not authorized to speak to the media. The cause of the accident was not
immediately known, but the official said high winds were a factor.
Four tugs were sent to realign the ship.
About 8 percent of world sea trade passes through the canal, which is 120
miles long and at its narrowest is 394 feet wide, divided into two 197-foot-wide
lanes, according to the Canal Authority. The ships pass in convoys that take 12
hours to make the journey.
The canal is a major source of foreign exchange for Egypt. It earned $3
billion in 2004 when the average number of ships per day was about
47.
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