THE first thing we saw was an image on Instagram, taken from a nearby box ship, of the 20,000-TEU Ever Given wedged sideways across the Suez Canal.
On 24 March, the world’s attention turned toward the maritime freight industry and the 399.94-metre-long ship clogging up that narrow strip of water through the Egyptian desert.
It took six days and a fleet of tugs and a very famous digger to refloat the vessel and re-open the vital link between the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean.
The Suez Canal Authority released footage of vessels and diggers working to free the vessel.
Many hoped the incident would bring the usually invisible shipping industry and its workers more notoriety. While it was certainly a spectacle, it is arguable whether the Ever Given changed public perception of our industry.
Read some of DCN’s coverage of the incident here, here and here.
