Maritime traffic halted in Bosporus Strait after vessel breaks down

A freighter passes through the Bosphorus Strait during heavy snowfall in Istanbul, Turkey on 26 January 2017 [Metin Tokgöz/Anadolu Agency]

Maritime traffic through the Bosporus, one of Turkey’s two main waterways, was suspended on Wednesday after a vessel malfunctioned and was left stranded, Anadolu News Agency reports.

The Directorate General of Coastal Safety said in a statement that the 70-meter-long (230-feet-long) vessel named BARLAS experienced engine failure off Istanbul’s Maiden’s Tower.

Rescue vessels were dispatched to help the vessel after traffic was halted, it added.

The Bosporus is one of the busiest points in Turkey in terms of maritime traffic.

Malfunctioning vessels occasionally block the passage of vessels travelling to and from the Black Sea to the Aegean, via the Sea of Marmara.

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