Image for representation purposes only A cargo vessel carrying Mercedes-Benz vans to the Port of Rotterdam has run aground in Düsseldorf’s harbour. Sources suggest that the cargo remains safe and nothing was damaged; however, the ship cannot be freed from the sandbank where it is stuck. This is because extremely low water levels make it impossible to free the ship, and if such an attempt were made, it could risk the structural integrity of the ship, a police officer said. The water level is presently too low for a tugboat to even reach the 135 m long ship. Hence, there is no other option than to wait. Fortunately, the ship has not blocked the traffic, as just a single harbour basin has been impacted by the incident. According to sources, the ship loaded cargo from the Sprinter Plant in Düsseldorf. The low water levels are due to drought-like conditions from a shortage of rainfall. The River Rhine has less water than it usually does, and this has prompted operators to reduce the loads on their ships, and some have even stopped operations on the route temporarily. Mosolf, a logistics company, said that efforts were ongoing to free the vessel using bow thrusters, after which a few units of the cargo could be unloaded.