A Greek-managed bulker grounded in the Suez Canal but was refloated quickly, after three tugboats rushed to assist, Leth Agencies reported. The ship was the 76,500-dwt Glory (built 2005), according to the agent. “M/V GLORY grounded while joining Southbound convoy near to Alaqantarah,” Leth Agencies said in a tweet at 0614 GMT on Monday. “Suez Canal Authority tugs are currently trying to refloat the vessel,” it added.

The 7,832-bhp Port Said (built 2007), the 433-gt Svitzer Suez 1 (built 2021) and the 567-gt Ali Shalabi (built 2021) managed to refloat within hours. “M/V GLORY has been refloated by the Suez Canal Authority tugs,” Leth said in a separate tweet on 0751 GMT. Ordinary convoy was expected to resume at 0900 GMT local time, with 21 southbound vessels resuming transits with only minor delays.

Executives at Target Marine, the Piraeus-based company managing the Glory, have not been immediately available for comment. The Associated Press reported that a spokesperson for the Suez Canal Authority declined to comment, saying a statement would be released. “It was not immediately clear what caused the vessel to run aground. Parts of Egypt including its northern provinces experienced a wave of bad weather Sunday,” the Associated Press said.

The Glory is a ship carrying Ukrainian grain under the United Nations-run Black Sea Grain Initiative (BSGI). According to The Joint Coordination Center of the initiative, the ship left Chornomorsk on Christmas day, loaded with 65,970 tonnes of corn, heading for China.

The grounding of Evergreen’s 20,388-teu Ever Given (built 2018) in the Suez Canal in March 2021 brought parts of world trade to a halt.