General cargo ship LOTUS ran aground on a coral reef in marine reserve in Gulf of Aqaba, Jordan, Red sea, while approaching port of destination Aqaba, though in a rather strange manner.
The ship ran aground at 0320 UTC Sep 13, was refloated about an hour and a half later, and towed to Aqaba anchorage.
As of 1400 UTC Sep 13, the ship remained at anchor. No news on possible oil leak, though according to Jordan Authorities, reef was damaged.
General Cargo LOTUS is currently located at EMED – East Mediterranean at position 35° 31′ 35.0″ N, 035° 46′ 03.8″ E as reported by MarineTraffic Terrestrial Automatic Identification System on 2022-09-13 13:16 UTC (4 hours, 42 minutes ago)
The wind in this area at that time blows from South direction at force 5 Beaufort
The vessel is currently at port LATAKIA, SY after a voyage of 15 hours, 39 minutes originating from port TRIPOLI, LB.
LOTUS (IMO: 9193525) is a General Cargo that was built in 1999 (23 years ago) and is sailing under the flag of Egypt.
It’s carrying capacity is 9389 t DWT and her current draught is reported to be 7.7 meters. Her length overall (LOA) is 136.43 meters and her width is 20.5 meters.
Sources : Marine Traffic and Maritime Security
