Truck with 'Evergreen' container blocks highway, goes viral for resembling Suez Canal situation

Uncanny.

Nigel Chua | March 27, 2021, 11:03 PM

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A truck carrying an "Evergreen" shipping container is going viral on social media for its marked similarity to the colossal container ship (also emblazoned with "Evergreen") that got stuck in the Suez Canal earlier this week.

Here's a photo of the truck that was uploaded on Weibo on Mar. 27:

via 囚青 / Weibo

The photo appears to be taken from surveillance footage, with text on the image's header stating the location of the incident to be the Changshen Expressway (长深高速), with the date and time of the photo indicated as 9:55am on Mar. 27.

And here's a photo of the Ever Given, a container ship that ran aground in the Suez Canal on Mar. 23:

Screenshot from fallenhearts17/Instagram

Besides the fact that both vehicles have the word "Evergreen" on their side, other uncanny similarities could be observed.

The truck and ship both veered off course to their right side, and came to a halt at a roughly 45° angle:

Screenshot via vesselfinder.com

Traffic obstruction being yet another perceived similarity.

Screenshot via vesselfinder.com

What is "Evergreen"?

Evergreen Line is the trading name adopted by a group of five shipping companies which include Evergreen Marine Corp. (Taiwan) Ltd..

Evergreen Marine Corp. is currently leasing the Ever Given from its Japanese owner, Shoei Kisen Kaisha.

According to a Mar. 24 statement on its website, Evergreen Marine Corp. is working closely with the Suez Canal Authority, "to refloat the

stranded ship as soon as possible."

However, neither Evergreen Marine Corp. nor its affiliated companies from Evergreen Line are likely to have much to do with the highway accident.

According to China Times, Evergreen said that it does not operate a trailer business in Mainland China, and that it is only responsible for transportation by sea.

Land transport, on the other hand, would be arranged by the owner of the cargo in the container.

This means that the shipping line is not responsible for the accident on the highway.

China Times quoted netizens joking that Evergreen's coverage was "comprehensive", having been associated with both sea and land blockages.

What is happening to the Ever Given?

"Gusting winds of 30 knots" on the morning of Mar. 23 were said to have caused the container ship to deviate from its course and run aground.

Efforts to get the ship floating again include towing and pushing the stranded Ever Given using powerful tugboats, along with dredging sand from around the ship's bow to free it, and lightening it by removing ballast water.

According to BBC News, the Suez Canal Authority announced today (Mar. 27) that the stern had begun to move, and that the ship's rudder and propeller had started working again.

In a Facebook post on Mar. 25, transport minister Ong Ye Kung warned of delays in the delivery of supplies to the region, and explained that Singapore's ports could see schedule disruptions if the situation in the Suez Canal causes shipping lines to reroute their journeys.

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Top image via 囚青 / Weibo