Istanbul Strait shipping traffic suspended after cargo vessel malfunction

Maritime traffic in the Istanbul Strait was temporarily suspended in both directions on Sunday after a dry cargo vessel suffered a mechanical failure off the coast of Beşiktaş.

In a statement, Türkiye’s General Directorate of Coastal Safety said the 185-meter-long dry cargo ship Zaltron, sailing from Egypt to Russia, experienced an engine malfunction off Kuruçeşme.

The statement added that tugboats Kurtarma-3, Kurtarma-5 and Kurtarma-9 were urgently dispatched to the scene, while vessel traffic in the Bosphorus was halted in both directions as a precaution.