Suez Canal: Authorities “working around the clock,” unclear when ship will refloat

Efforts to dislodge a giant container ship blocking the Suez Canal had allowed the vessel’s stern and rudder to move on Saturday, but it remained unclear when the ship could be refloated, the head of the canal authority said. Suez Canal Authority (SCA) Chairman Osama Rabie said they are “working around the clock” and that he hoped it would not be necessary to resort to removing some of the 18,300 containers from the ship to lighten its load, but that strong tides and winds were complicating efforts to free it. The 400-metre long Ever Given became wedged diagonally across a southern section of the canal amid high winds early on Tuesday, disrupting global shipping by blocking one of the world’s busiest waterways.