The saying goes that the tide floats all boats. The current hope is that a peak high tide on Monday may allow salvors to refloat the ultra-large container ship Ever Given that has been blocking all traffic in the Suez Canal since Tuesday. Monday’s tide is expected to be 18″ above mean high water and is hoped to be enough, coupled with frantic dredging and excavating around the ship, to refloat the “beached whale” behemoth.

If the ship cannot be freed in the next several days, it is likely that the process could stretch from days to weeks, as liquids and cargo are off-loaded to lighten the ship. The shutdown of the canal is estimated to be costing $10 billion dollars per day in lost commerce. There are currently almost 250 ships waiting to transit the canal. In the best case, if the ship is refloated in the next few days, it will likely take weeks to clear the ship traffic-jam at either end of the canal.

Ships are beginning to be rerouted away from the Suez Canal on the much longer trip around Africa. Tellingly, one of the first large container ships to be rerouted is Evergreen’s Ever Greet, a near sister to the Ever Given.

#suezcanal update with @LLIntelligence figures: queue expands by 22% by dwt and 14% by vessel count to ~248 vessels of 20.7m dwt compared to 24 hours ago. First containership (Ever Greet steaming at high speed for Cape) seen diverting & expect to discover more today. pic.twitter.com/PpDlxGXZRB

— Michelle Wiese Bockmann (@Michellewb_) March 26, 2021