More than 48 hours after a dust storm beached the Ever Given container ship across the Suez Canal in Egypt, crews and tugboats are still working to unclog one of the world's key trading routes. Perhaps one of the most pressing issues with the vessel is its absolutely gargantuan size: At 1,300 feet long, the ship is slightly larger than New York City's Empire State Building.
If placed vertically, the Ever Given would be the world's 37th tallest building, according to a list of the tallest buildings by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. The largest military aircraft carriers in the world are colloquially known as "floating cities," but the Ever Given surpasses even them in length and width.
Read more: The name of the ship blocking the Suez Canal is the 'Ever Given,' not the 'Evergreen'
At its widest, the Suez Canal is only 738 feet, preventing the boat from even being able to turn around within the narrow aquatic boundaries. Satellite images taken of the Ever Given on Thursday morning put the boat's size into perspective, showing the ship splayed out diagonally across the canal and preventing any boats from passing by.
—Airbus Space (@AirbusSpace) March 25, 2021
According to a recent Insider report, it could take weeks to dislodge the Ever Given, which could force other ships to take a 15,000-mile detour around the southern tip of Africa to reach their destinations.
An engineer aboard the Maersk Denver, an American container ship, shared one of the first photos of the Suez Canal blockage with the world on Instagram.
The Maersk Denver was positioned directly behind the Ever Given for more than a day as crews attempted to rescue the Netherlands-bound boat, but a live map of the region from VesselFinder shows the ship recently turned around to find a different route.
