On the Suez Canal, tug boats and diggers are working to free a giant containership stuck on the waterway after it veered off course in a sandstorm, officials said.

The incident, RTE reports has created huge tailbacks on one of the world's busiest trade routes.

Egypt's Suez Canal Authority said it was doing all it could to refloat the Taiwan-run but Panama-flagged MV Ever Given.

The 400-metre long and 59-metre wide vessel is lodged at an angle across the waterway.

Historic sections of the canal have been reopened in a bid to ease the bottleneck of backed up marine traffic.

"The container accidentally ran aground after a suspected gust of wind hit it," said ship operator Evergreen Marine Corp.

The SCA said the ship was caught up in a sandstorm, a common occurence in Egypt's Sinai desert at this time of year, blotting out light and limiting the captain's ability to see.

More here on this incident.