The Suez Canal was opened in November 1869. It connects the Mediterranean Sea with Red Sea. The completion of the canal reduced shipping time from East Asia to Europe by three weeks. Before the canal was completed ships had to travel around the horn of Africa. Today ships would take about a week longer to travel around the horn.

We have a problem that will impact the entire world. It has been reported that 12% of all goods shipped in the world pass through the Suez Canal. Right now one of the largest ships in the world has gone aground while traveling through that canal. The ship left China with a destination of Rotterdam Holland.

How the hell did this happen?

Evergreen Marine, owner of the ship, said the Ever Given, which is 59 metres wide, “was suspected of being hit by a sudden strong wind, causing the hull to deviate from the waterway and accidentally hit the bottom and run aground.”

Jamil Sayegh, a former captain and maritime law specialist with experience navigating the canal thought that human error may also have been a factor since ships traverse the canal in convoys and none of the vessels behind the Ever Given had run into similar troubles.