Cambridgeshire’s ‘Suez Canal crisis’ was averted last night after a huge timber ship that became wedged in a river was re-floated.

Two tug boats took an hour to release the 80-metre long Baltic Arrow at high tide at 9.30pm last night after it became stuck in the River Nene en-route to Wisbech.

The ship became stuck in the river around 12 hours earlier at 8.49am, when the captain reported a ‘grounding.’

The incident echoes a similar event in 2021 when a massive cargo vessel ran aground in the Suez Canal, blocking the global shipping lane. 

A cargo ship carrying timber was freed last night after becoming stuck in a river in Cambridgeshire 12 hours earlier

Two tug boats helped to release The Baltic Arrow which had become wedged en-route to Wisbech from Latvia 

The crew aboard The Baltic Arrow as it was being re-floated to continue its journey to Wisbech

The Baltic Arrow, which was built in 2002, was sailing from Riga in Latvia to the port of Wisbech with timber in packs.

The cargo ship – which is sailing under the flag of St Kitts and Nevis – had six crew members and two local pilots on board. There have been no reports of injuries or damage. 

A port spokesperson said yesterday the grounding was a ‘rare situation’ but because the tide had fallen the plan was to wait until the vessel was ‘afloat at next high water to free her from the banks’.

The grounding appeared to have happened due to the tide going out whilst part of the vessel was in contact with the bank.

Tug boats freed the ship last night after waiting for the next high tide.

A spokesperson from Wisbech Port said a full investigation will be carried out to find out why the ship was grounded.

When the giant 200,000-ton Ever Given cargo ship – the size of four football pitches – drifted across the entire width of the Suez Canal in 2021, it blocked the vital shipping route for six days. The blockage held up more than 400 vessels. 

A photograph of the 80-metre ship blocking the river yesterday morning

The Baltic Arrow being re-floated after becoming stuck. The incident yesterday was said to echo the events of 2021 when the Suez Canal became blocked by a massive cargo ship

It is believed the incident occurred because the tide went out while part of the vessel was in contact with the bank

The ship continuing its journey after being freed last night

A Wisbech port spokesperson said yesterday: ‘Since tide has fallen away, the plan is to wait until the vessel is afloat at next high water to free her from the banks with additional tug assistance and continue her pilotage safely into Wisbech Port. 

‘This is a rare situation to happen at Wisbech. We hope to have the vessel freed this evening and bring her alongside for discharging as usual.’

They added: ‘All berths at Wisbech port are NAABSA berths which stand for “not always afloat but safely aground” so technically all vessels ground whilst moored here during low water.

‘The river bed is very soft and sludgy here and the vessel is designed to safely ground so we are confident of no ongoing issues.’