Panama Canal to cut daily ship traffic as drought worsens from El Nino
The Panama Canal will limit daily vessel traffic from September 3, the Pnama Canal Authority said Thursday, as a severe drought fuelled by El Nino depletes water supplies needed to operate the vital trade route. The restrictions will reduce crossings from 36 ships a day to 34, and then to 32 from September 15.
The Panama Canal Authority has announced that it will limit daily vessel traffic due to a severe drought caused by El Nino. From September 3, the number of daily crossings will be reduced from 36 ships to 34, and further decreased to 32 from September 15.
The restrictions are necessary due to depleted water supplies, with rainfall from May through August being 34 per cent below the historical average. The canal's watershed inflows have also plummeted 44 per cent below normal.
The daily capacity at the Neopanamax locks will be capped at nine slots, while the older Panamax locks will be limited to 25 slots from September 4, and further reduced to 23 slots from September 15, according to the New Straits Times.
Brief written by urgent.news from France 24, New Straits Times — 2 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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- [UPDATED] Panama Canal to cap daily transits, anticipating severe El Niño nst.com.my
- Panama Canal to reduce shipping over El Nino-fueled drought gulfnews.com
- Panama Canal to reduce shipping over El Nino-fuelled drought freemalaysiatoday.com
- Panama Canal to reduce shipping over El Nino-fuelled drought straitstimes.com
- Panama Canal to cut daily transits as El Niño grips region ft.com
