Just hours before running aground in the Suez Canal, blocking one of the world's busiest shipping channels and threatening to cripple global trade, the Ever Given container ship charted a course resembling a giant penis.
Marine tracking website VesselFinder has analysed the ship's movement before it entered the Suez Canal on Tuesday and found that it had earlier charted an interesting course.
In the middle of the Gulf of Suez, east of the Egyptian city of Al-Adabiya, and at the northern end of the Red Sea, the Ever Given can be seen making a shape similar to a penis. Some have also suggested that the large circular course it charts afterwards could resemble ass cheeks with the penis in the middle.
Canadian-American magazine Vice asked VesselFinder if the data was accurate.
"There is no room for some kind of conspiracies or false data," a spokesperson said.
Many social media users have commented on the ship's humorous course.
"That's got to be the best pirate I've ever seen," one person said.
"If this causes a major crisis, I won't be even mad lol," another said on YouTube.
"This is going to be the most boring Tom Hanks movie ever," a third added.
"This drawing before blocking the canal completely? I'm starting to think this wasn't an accident. I think this was a 'dick move' taken to an all-new level."
The ship tracking website currently shows the vessel in the middle of the Suez Canal with hundreds of other boats waiting on either side of the channel.
They may be waiting a while, however. The company trying to salvage the Ever Given has described it as a "beached whale" that may take weeks to free. Eight tugs are trying to move the 400m long vessel, which is positioned diagonally across the narrow stretch of water.
The blockage has caused one of the worst shipping jams in years with concerns about the effect on global trade, especially after the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. About 30 percent of global container ship traffic passes through the waters every day, carrying about 12 percent of world trade.
A spokesperson for New Zealand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) told Newshub on Thursday officials are monitoring the situation closely.
Ever Given's Japanese ship owner Shoei Kisen has apologised for the incident and said it wasn't clear if the vessel, which was heading to Europe from China, would float again.
It's believed the vessel became grounded due to bad weather and high winds.
