Relief as 'Ever Given of the Fens' floats free from mud... ending Suez-like blockage

When a 200,000-tonne ship got itself wedged across the Suez Canal, it held up billions of dollars of global trade for six days.

So when cargo vessel Baltic Arrow got stuck on a major Fens river this week, it must have caused some anxious moments for some.

Happily, the blockage on the Nene was resolved slightly faster and with less consequence than the drama on the Suez in March 2021.

The boat was wedged near Wisbech (Image: Toby Elliott)

The ship was successfully refloated around 13 hours after it became wedged two miles downstream of Wisbech.

The vessel had run aground at around 9am on Tuesday as it headed towards the Cambridgeshire port with a cargo of timber from Latvia.

As the tide went out it became firmly wedged, deep into both banks of the river.

Attempts to free it during the day with a tugboat were unsuccessful and the stranded vessel became a focus of interest for locals who walked out to see it.

READ MORE: Plans to convert Elme Hall Hotel at Wisbech into flats

However, a fresh effort was made to move the ship as the tide rose later in the evening, with two tugs trying to dislodge her.

The ship became stuck at around 9am yesterday (Image: Chris Bishop)

The vessel is almost 262 feet long (Image: Chris Bishop)

And as the sun was setting, at around 10pm, Baltic Arrow finally squeaked free of the banks and was able to continue her voyage upstream to Wisbech port.

READ MORE: Baltic Arrow ship stuck in the River Nene near Wisbech

The 262ft ship is understood to have had six members of crew and two local pilots on board when it ran aground. There were no reports of injuries.

For the brief time she was wedged on the Nene, the ship was dubbed the "Ever Given of the Fens" after the huge container ship which blocked the Suez Canal in 2021.

The ship became free at around 10pm (Image: Toby Elliott)

That ship was stuck for six days and eventually required more than a dozen tugboats, suction dredgers, and high-capacity pumps to help free her.

The Nene has previously suffered another ship blockage.

In 2020, the German vessel Lagik became stuck. The weight of the ship caused it to break its back and Wisbech port was blocked for a total of 44 days as the stricken vessel was removed.

Among the sightseers to the stranded Baltic Arrow on Tuesday was Rachel Horn, who lives nearby.

"I wanted to show the kids because me and my husband saw the Lagik get stuck 24 years ago. We never thought we would see it again," she said.