CAIRO (AP) – Two tankers carrying oil products and liquefied natural gas collided in the Suez Canal, disrupting traffic through the global waterway, Egyptian authorities said Wednesday.
The Suez Canal authority said in a statement that the BW Lesmes, a Singapore-flagged tanker that carries liquefied natural gas, suffered a mechanical malfunction on Tuesday night and ran aground while transiting through the canal. The Burri, a Cayman Island-flagged oil products tanker, collided with the broken vessel.
The collision disrupted traffic, the statement said. The two tanker were part of a convoy transiting through from the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea.
صور الناقلة BW LESMES في غاطس السويس#Suezcanal #قناة_السويس_شريان_الحياة pic.twitter.com/Ql45lXD00q
— هيئة قناة السويس Suez Canal Authority (@SuezAuthorityEG) August 23, 2023
Towing operation of the tanker BURRI
صور من عملية قطر الناقلة BURRI#قناة_السويس_شريان_الحياة | #SUEZCANAL pic.twitter.com/K1gFv1ttVE
— هيئة قناة السويس Suez Canal Authority (@SuezAuthorityEG) August 23, 2023
“We´ve immediately handled the breakdowns … and traffic will go back to normal in both directions within the coming hours,” said Adm. Ossama Rabei, the head of the canal authority, in the statement.
About 10% of world trade flows through the canal, a major source of foreign currency for the Egyptian government.
In March 2021, the Panama-flagged Ever Given, a colossal container ship, crashed into a bank on a single-lane stretch of the canal, blocking the waterway for six days and disrupting global trade.
BREAKING: SUEZ TANKER CRASH
MarineTraffic has received eye-witness report from the #SuezCanal that 2 tankers have collided. The reported incident involves the Burri, a Cayman island tanker, and the BW Lesmes, a Singapore flagged LNG tanker.
Track live on https://t.co/QiJtfEMKYD pic.twitter.com/Da0D1n2k89
— MarineTraffic (@MarineTraffic) August 22, 2023
MarineTraffic, a vessel tracking service provider, released a time-lapse video for the incident that showed the Burri turning to port and colliding with the BW Lesmes which was already grounding across the waterway.
The canal authorities said they managed to refloat and tow away the BW Lesmes, while efforts were underway to remove the Burri from the waterway.
“All crew members are safe and accounted for and there were no injuries or any reports of pollution,” BW LNG AS, the operators of the BW Lesmes, said in a statement.
Rabei said initial inspections showed that there was no significant damage to the tankers, or pollution at the site. A technical team from Oslo, Norway would arrive at the vessel later Wednesday to investigate the incident, BW LNG AS said.
Wednesday´s incident was the latest case of a vessel reported stuck in the crucial waterway. A flurry of ships has run aground or broken down in the Suez Canal over the past few years.
The canal, which opened in 1869, provides a crucial link for oil, natural gas and cargo.
According to the Suez Canal Authority, last year 23,851 vessels passed through the waterway, compared to 20,649 vessels in 2021. The revenue from the canal in 2022 reached $8 billion, the highest in its history.
Adm. Rabiee: “We’ve immediately handled the breakdowns sustained by an LNG carrier and a tanker during their transit through the Canal, and navigation will go back to normal in both directions within the coming hours”#Suezcanal pic.twitter.com/gaVQD7HQny
— هيئة قناة السويس Suez Canal Authority (@SuezAuthorityEG) August 23, 2023