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Last month, the Panama Maritime Authority published its final report [pdf] into the 2021 grounding of the Ever Given (MeFi previously). Mike Schuler summarised the findings at gCaptain, noting that:

The report was highly critical of navigation decisions made by the SCA pilots. According to the report, they did not take bad weather conditions into account, gave improper instructions to the helmsman, and did not communicate effectively with the bridge team due to language difficulties. The vessel was also traveling faster than the maximum speed, which the report noted is common.

Some lessons clearly remain to be learned though, because today, the 300m LNG carrier BW Lesmes also got itself jammed sideways in the canal, and the Cayman Islands tanker Burri ran into it. This time however, both ships were freed within a few hours.
posted by automatronic on Aug 23, 2023 - 9 comments

Analog horror filmmaker Alex Casanas (MISTERMANTICORE) is perhaps best known on YouTube for the Monument Mythos. This is a wide-spanning series of alternate history of the US, past and present, but it mainly focuses on the time of the 37th President, James Dean, and occasionally his best friend, Richard Nixon.
The lore goes three seasons deep, but it begins simply, with the CORNERFOLK, and goes into rich, strange places, some more like short fiction than film -- the LIBERTYLURKER (3:48), the mitosis of Alcatraz (4:07). It's best to take them in order to catch the full scope of exactly what the hell is going on here, which, by turns, is dreadful, hilarious, and heartbreaking -- as when the Ever Given got up and walked away (16:22). [more inside]
posted by Countess Elena on Aug 2, 2023 - 3 comments

In March 2022 The Ever Forward grounded in Chesapeake Bay. Much discussed here at the time. Now nine months later the US Coast Guard has issued its accident report with recommendations. The slightly garrulous Sal Mercogliano give his insider's take: good fun but 30mins. tl;dr: the Captain was having dinner downstairs; the pilot was chatn and txtn on his phone; the most junior watch-keeper had the con; visibility and weather fine. What could possibly go wrong? [more inside]
posted by BobTheScientist on Dec 10, 2022 - 13 comments

The ship [...] arrived at Felixstowe - months later than expected but with its fame - or infamy - assured. As it turned the corner for the home straight, noise levels from those waiting dropped noticeably to almost a hush, only to be broken by children shouting "It's here!". [BBC]
posted by ellieBOA on Aug 4, 2021 - 13 comments

Sail away. A brief but delightful tribute to the Evergreen Ever Given. (SLYT)
posted by Kat Allison on Jun 16, 2021 - 17 comments

Inside a viral website: This is an account of running istheshipstillstuck.com. [Via Popbitch]
posted by chavenet on May 6, 2021 - 20 comments

"Ships so big they get stuck in the Suez Canal literally define 'chokepoint' but other waterways will play much more serious roles as the rivalry between China and the U.S. heats up." A Twitter thread by David Fickling of Bloomberg on the strategic importance of ocean straits throughout history, including the Trojan War, the British Empire, and China's Belt and Road Initiative. Article by Fickling and Anjani Trivedi. [more inside]
posted by russilwvong on Apr 17, 2021 - 37 comments

"Why should the Suez Canal have all the fun? From the comfort of home you can get the Ever Given stuck wherever you want it."
posted by CarrotAdventure on Mar 29, 2021 - 25 comments

A 200,000 ton container ship is jammed sideways in the Suez Canal. A crew member on the ship behind has posted the view on Instagram of the MV Ever Given, one of the largest container ships in existence, stuck firmly across the canal. An excavator can be seen trying to dig the colossal bow of the 400m ship out of the east bank. Every available tug has been scrambled to assist, but it's now been several hours and the ship remains firmly stuck. AIS tracking data shows a traffic jam is forming at both ends of the Suez canal. Unless the stricken vessel can be freed, millions of tonnes of shipping will face a 5,500 mile diversion around the entire African continent.
posted by automatronic on Mar 23, 2021 - 577 comments