Komatsu excavator helps dislodge Suez Canal blockage

A Komatsu excavator helps free the Ever Given, a 220,000-ton ship that was wedged in the Suez Canal for six days

After six days as the world’s biggest story, figuratively and literally, the Ever Given, the 220,000-ton container ship that blocked the Suez Canal for almost a week and drastically affected the world economy by effectively pausing one of our busiest shipping passages, was freed through a combination of efforts from tugboat crews, several logistics strategies and one Komatsu excavator.

According to USA TODAY, construction crews removed 30,000 cubic meters of sand to dislodge the 1,312-foot-long ship, which wedged itself sideways in the Egyptian waterway on March 23.

On its route from Malaysia to the Netherlands, the Ever Given and its haul of approximately 20,000 shipping containers faced high winds when it entered the Suez Canal, where it ran aground, blocking the passage.

Komatsu is one of the largest international construction equipment manufacturers. The company’s North American arm followed the Ever Given news on Twitter and shared news and memes of the international rescue.

It’s been a busy 2021 for Komatsu, which has introduced the PC88MR-11 ‘midi’ excavator and the company’s smallest machine control excavator.

Also contributing to the rescue were SMIT Salvage and Boskalis, both part of the Royal Boskalis Westminster group, which were instructed to remove vessel by the Suez Canal Company, owner of the waterway.