Drought Causes 154-Ship Traffic Jam at Panama Canal
Jalopnik Website | Erin Marquis

The Panama Canal, one of the major shipping routes through which 40 percent of container goods sold in America travels, currently has a 21-day wait time for ships attempting to make the passage. And the situation will only get worse before it gets better.

The number of vessels waiting to sneak

“sneak”?

between North and South America currently stands at 154. The traffic jam is thanks to a severe drought that has afflicted the area since this Spring. About $270 billion in cargo travels through the canal every year…

Not only are reservations for making it through the canal cut down, but the Panama Canal Authority also issued a weight limit of about 40 percent lower than the previous limit, leaving heavier tankers

euphemism for American cruise ships?

already on their way to the canal in a lurch. Drought conditions have lasted for years now and the multiple lakes which feed the canal and allows the locks to operate, is at a four-year low.

“Those containers left may need another vessel to complete the journey,” said Captain Adil Ashiq, head of North America for MarineTraffic told CNBC. “This is going to get worse before it gets better.”