There was no damage to US Navy vessels or injuries to US personnel in the attack, said the US official, who declined to be named.
Convoys of ships coming from the south were being diverted along the original branch of the canal, the canal authority said.
The report did not state what countries the vessels or the crew were from.
The Houthi movement claimed that it was not acting under a directive by Iran when it seized the ship.
The underwater unit worked to defuse any devices which were suspected to contain explosive material.
Russia's Naval Aviation has been particularly diligent in its maritime air patrol operations recently, according to the British Defense Ministry.
The Danish military's Joint Arctic Command (JAC) said Tuesday's tide had failed to lift the 104-meter (341-foot) Ocean Explorer enough to free it.
The US continues to see Iranian harassment of commercial vessels in the Persian Gulf.
According to the ministry, the unregistered yacht was docked at the port with over 100 liters of diesel in the tank.
Russia said its Vasily Bykov patrol ship fired with automatic weapons on the "Sukru Okan" vessel after the captain did not respond to a request to halt for an inspection.
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