The gigantic container ship which sparked global shipping chaos when it blocked the Suez Canal for six days has finally arrived in the UK – four months later than planned.
The skyscraper-sized Ever Given vessel docked at Felixstowe port, Suffolk on Tuesday afternoon to scores of awaiting spectators on the coastline.
The Panama-flagged boat, which weighs 220,000 tonnes, was originally meant to arrive in the UK port in early April.
But it hit headlines a month earlier when it got itself wedged for almost a week in Egypt’s famously narrow Suez Canal, bringing international shipping to a grinding halt.
The gigantic container ship which sparked global shipping chaos when it blocked the Suez Canal for six days has finally arrived in the UK – four months later than planned
The blockage is estimated to have disrupted around £42billion of global trade, with the ship only being re-floated after six days.
Companies such as IKEA and Lenovo are just two of the businesses with products on the Japanese-owned vessel, with other smaller firms also awaiting the arrival of their stock.
Jack Griffiths, 26, who runs the cosy blanket company Snuggy, said that his company is currently waiting on over £400,000 of stock, totalling around 8,000 individual items.
He told MailOnline: ‘If ours is one of the first to be taken off we could be looking at getting it on Friday this week but if it’s one of the later ones we could be looking at Tuesday next week.’
Jack Griffiths, 26, (right) who runs the cosy blanket company Snuggy, said that his company is currently waiting on over £400,000 of stock, totalling around 8,000 individual items
Despite the months of delays in getting his stock, Jack said his company has received very little communication about the status of his goods. He said: ‘The communication has been terrible, we’ve been left in the dark about it.
‘I’m not sure if it’s been the same for the bigger companies like IKEA or the other big guns on there, but we’ve been absolutely left in the dark and not heard anything. We’ve had to do our own research to find out what’s been happening.’
Explaining the effect the delays have had on his business, Jack told MailOnline: ‘It’s had a huge knock on effect on the whole company and had a domino effect further down the line. We’ve managed to somehow keep it away from the customers and not let anyone down and still been fulfilling orders.
‘It’s damaged our cashflow as all the stock was fully paid for… the cashflow has damaged our stock levels, meaning we can’t buy more stock to advertise the way we want to. It’s just kept going and going, we’ve been on the verge now for a couple of months now.
The Panama-flagged boat, which weighs 220,000 tonnes, was originally meant to arrive in the UK port in early April. But it hit headlines a month earlier when it got itself wedged for almost a week in Egypt’s famously narrow Suez Canal, bringing international shipping to a grinding halt
‘We should adapt and get back on our feet fairly quickly, but we’ve lost a vital 6 months of our start-up growth period which we wont get back. So that’s a tough pill to swallow.’
Jack also said that he never imagined his £400,00 of stock would be delayed for so many months, initially predicting he would see his goods within two weeks.
‘Iits something you can’t really pan for as a business owner,’ he said. ‘You expect he short delays, but something like this, especially with the biggest order we’ve ever placed, to get a delay like this, it’s just crazy.’
Bicycle maker Pearson 1860 has been stuck in limbo since the ship ran aground in the Suez Canal with $100,000-worth of stock onboard.
Speaking to CNN back in June, the company’s director Will Pearson said: ‘We don’t hold out much hope of seeing our stock this year and although it is insured in transit, we have guessed there will be little chance of seeing a settlement for months if not years.’
The skyscraper-sized Ever Given vessel docked at Felixstowe port, Suffolk on Tuesday afternoon to scores of awaiting spectators on the coastline
Also still sitting in cargo containers on the ship include items such as barbecues, bamboo, lawnmowers, camping equipment, laptops and tofu, among other products, the Guardian previously reported.
Large crowds – from boat enthusiasts to young families – gathered at Felixstowe today to catch a glimpse of what is arguably the world’s most famous container ship.
The Ever Given arrived from Rotterdam, Netherlands, where it docked on July 29 with 18,300 containers on board.
Crews will fully unload the 400-metre vessel in Felixstowe before it heads off to Dunkirk, France, where engineers will check if any repairs are necessary.
Large crowds – from boat enthusiasts to young families – gathered at Felixstowe today to catch a glimpse of what is arguably the world’s most famous container ship
The blockage is estimated to have disrupted around £42billion of global trade, with the ship only being re-floated after six days
Many suppliers in the UK have been blaming the late arrival of the ship for short supplies of numerous goods made in the Far East, particularly garden furniture which there is a huge demand for from people deciding to stay at home during the pandemic.
Ship spotter Dean Cable of north Suffolk waited for more than eight hours to get a glimpse of the skyscraper-sized ship as four tugs helped edge it into its berth at the port, ready for its containers to be taken off by cranes.
Dean said: ‘This ship is all over the news and everyone wants to see it. I have been tracking it since it left Malaysia because it was on its way to Felixstowe and I just could not believe it when it got stuck in the Suez Canal.
‘My first thought was, ‘What went wrong?’ and my second thought was unprintable. I am wondering if it was the fault of the canal authority for letting it go too quick, but I don’t think the operators of the ship will ever live it down.
The Ever Given arrived from Rotterdam, Netherlands, where it docked on July 29 with 18,300 containers on board
Crews will fully unload the 400-metre vessel in Felixstowe before it heads off to Dunkirk, France, where engineers will check if any repairs are necessary
‘Luckily the way it came into Felixstowe was a textbook job. Nothing went wrong at all and I am glad that everything on the ship will now get to everyone who has been waiting for it.’
NHS health care assistant Lola Jarvis, 32, of Saxmundham, Suffolk, who watched the ship arrive with her son Charlie, ten, said: ‘We have been coming here a lot during the lockdowns to see the ships and we didn’t want to miss this one.
‘It is always impressive to see them and there has been a lot of hype about the Ever Given. I know a lot of people have got stuff stuck on there so I am glad that it is here at last.’
Retired company director Geoff Lovell, 71, who was visiting from Horsham, West Sussex, added: ‘I came here out of interest because it was stuck in the Suez Canal. Looking at it makes me wonder what all the goods are in the containers.’
Many suppliers in the UK have been blaming the late arrival of the ship for short supplies of numerous goods made in the Far East, particularly garden furniture which there is a huge demand for from people deciding to stay at home during the pandemic
The ship had originally been due to arrive at the Port of Felixstowe in early April before it ended up causing one of the biggest traffic jams in maritime history.
Some of the delayed vessels were forced to take the much longer route to Europe around the southern tip of Africa.
The Ever Given was finally allowed to continue its voyage to Europe in July after the ship’s Japanese owner, Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd, and the canal authorities reached an agreement
But the ship was forced to travel at a fraction of its normal speed after suffering suspected damage in the canal.
Ship spotter Dean Cable of north Suffolk waited for more than eight hours to get a glimpse of the skyscraper-sized ship as four tugs helped edge it into its berth at the port, ready for its containers to be taken off by cranes
It first unloaded some of its cargo in Rotterdam before heading across the North Sea to Felixstowe, where it is expected to stay for several days.
The cargo on the ship is said to range from barbecues and sun loungers to swimwear, lawnmowers and camping equipment as well as electrical gear for Dixons Carphone and goods for Ikea
A Dixons Carphone spokesperson said in June: ‘A small number of our containers remain on the Ever Given vessel, however there is no meaningful disruption to our stock levels or business operations.’
The ship, which carries cargo between Asia and Europe, was held for more than three months amid a financial dispute over compensation.
The Ever Given was finally allowed to continue its voyage to Europe in July after the ship’s Japanese owner, Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd, and the canal authorities reached an agreement But the ship was forced to travel at a fraction of its normal speed after suffering suspected damage in the canal
After an agreement was met between the ship’s Japanese owner, Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd, and canal authorities it was freed to continue its voyage in July.
It unloaded cargo in Rotterdam before heading toward Felixstowe, where it is expected to berth at around 0900 on Tuesday.
‘It was a great relief to see her and a special moment,’ said Hans Nagtegaal, the Rotterdam port’s director of containers, of Ever Given’s arrival.
‘Finally we can get the job done offloading and hopefully get her back to a normal sailing routine,’ he said.