Two tankers collide briefly in Suez Canal

A container ship sails at the Suez Canal, in Ismailia, Egypt March 31, 2021. Suez Canal Authority/Handout via REUTERS

CAIRO — Two tankers, the Singapore-flagged BW Lesmes and Cayman Islands-flagged Burri, briefly collided in Egypt’s Suez Canal, ship tracking company MarineTraffic said early on Wednesday, citing eyewitnesses.

The shipping tracker showed the BW Lesmes, which carries LNG, stopped and pointing north, and Burri, an oil products tanker, moored and pointing south about 19 km from the southern end of the canal at 2:55 a.m.(2355 GMT).

LNG tanker BW Lesmes will be towed away to the Suez anchorage area, shipping sources told Reuters.

A time-lapse shared by MarineTraffic showed Burri turning sideways and colliding with an already sideways BW Lesmes at 2040 GMT before backing up and pointing straight.

The last port call for both ships had been Port Said to the north.

There was no immediate confirmation from the Suez Canal Authority.

Approximately 12% of the world’s trade moves through the canal. During strong winds in 2021, a huge container ship, the Ever Given, became jammed across it, halting traffic in both directions for six days and disrupting global trade.

Since then, there have been minor issues caused by technical problems with individual ships.

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