Ever Given: The Sequel? Trade ship blocks river in West Sussex town

Forget the Ever Given in the Suez Canal – The Elise in Littlehampton is what’s causing today's nautical drama.

The Elise is an 80-meter cargo ship, which spent some time basking in the sun whilst wedged in the River Arun, , West Sussex, in the early hours of Tuesday.

However, instead of creating a week-long drama that disrupted global shipping efforts, the Antigua and Barbuda flagged vessel was cleared hours later.

It’s just too easy to draw comparisons, and given the void in memes that the freeing of the Ever Given has caused, it makes sense that this posed a new opportunity for Twitter laughs...

Have you ever had the feeling that you’re just not getting enough attention, maybe that it’s your time in the spotlight? Well, so has The Elise.

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The ship was moored after a journey from Belgium to unload cargo, but, as she was resting, the tide fell away. A harbour spokesperson described how she became stuck into the “mud berth” under her, resulting in The Elise blocking most of the waterway.

However – clearly not wanting to put Ever Given in the shade – she allowed ships to squeeze past her, and caused no injuries or pollution, making for an overall much calmer sequel.

At around 1.15 pm on Tuesday, The Elise was seen being moved by a smaller craft until she came to rest against the bank of the Arun, leaving the river clear.

The ship is not believed to have suffered any damage in the incident.