Navigation traffic in the Suez Canal has resumed normally after a brief slowdown following a collision between two oil tankers in the world's busiest waterway.

The Suez Canal Authority stated in a statement that the BW Lesmes tanker, flying the Singapore flag and carrying liquefied natural gas, suffered a mechanical failure on Tuesday night and veered off course while crossing the canal, then collided with the petroleum products tanker Bouri, which flies the Cayman Islands flag, at the broken ship.

The statement added that the incident led to a disruption of traffic, and the two tankers were part of a convoy passing from the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea.

Lieutenant General Osama Rabie, chairman of the canal authority, stated in the announcement: "We immediately addressed the malfunctions, and traffic will return to normal in both directions within the coming hours."

MarineTraffic, a company that provides vessel tracking services, released a time-lapse video of the incident showing Bouri turning to port and colliding with BW Lesmes, which was already moving through the waterway. The authority indicated that about twenty other tankers passing through the canal were delayed.

Bouri was built in 2018, measuring 250 meters in length and 44 meters in width. BW Lesmes was constructed three years later, with a length of 295 meters and a width of 46.43 meters, according to MarineTraffic.

The canal authorities reported that they were able to refloat and tow BW Lesmes, while efforts were ongoing to remove Bouri from the waterway. They published images showing BW Lesmes moored at the canal berth, while other images showed Bouri being towed away.

BW Ling AS, the operator of BW Lesmes, stated: "All crew members are fine and have been checked, and there were no injuries or reports of contamination."

Rabie stated that initial inspections revealed no significant damage to the tankers or pollution at the site. BW Ling AS announced that a technical team from Oslo, Norway, would arrive at the ship later on Wednesday to investigate the incident.

This incident was the latest case of a ship reported stuck in the vital waterway. A number of vessels have run aground or malfunctioned in the Suez Canal over the past few years.

About 10 percent of global trade flows through the canal daily. In March 2021, the massive container ship "Ever Given," flying the Panama flag, ran aground on a bank along the single-lane canal, blocking the waterway for six days and disrupting global trade.

Earlier this month, a Qatari ship sank in the canal after colliding with a tanker flying the Hong Kong flag.

A sister ship that closed the Suez Canal near Baltimore
The canal, which connects the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea, opened in 1869. It provides a vital link for oil, natural gas, and goods. The canal authority manages a convoy system consisting of one heading north and another heading south daily.

According to the Suez Canal Authority, 23,851 ships passed through the waterway last year, compared to 20,649 ships in 2021. The canal's revenue in 2022 was $8 billion, the highest in its history.