A mammoth cargo ship believed to be carrying thousands of vehicles including 1,100 Porsches was on fire and drifting off the coast of the Azores on Thursday after its 22 crew members were rescued from the vessel.
The fire broke out on Wednesday morning in the cargo hold of the ship, called the Felicity Ace, which had departed from Emden, Germany, on February 10 and was scheduled to arrive in Davisville, Rhode Island, on Wednesday, according to a ship tracking website. The ship was about 322 kilometres from Terceira Island in the Azores, the Portuguese island territory, when Portuguese forces moved on Wednesday to evacuate the crew.
The 200-metre-long Felicity Ace car carrier caught fire and was abandoned of the coast of the Azores.Credit:Marinha Portuguesa
No rescuers or crew members were injured in the “highly skilled and physically demanding” operation, which included a helicopter that whisked the crew members to the nearby Portuguese island of Faial, according to authorities.
It was unclear how much of the 650-foot (200 metre), 60,000-tonne cargo ship’s inventory was lost in the fire and how authorities would tend to the stricken ship. The shipping company could not immediately be reached.
The Drive, an automotive website, reported that the Volkswagen Group estimated nearly 4000 vehicles were on board, including 189 Bentleys. Emails sent to the Volkswagen Group were not immediately answered.
The fire comes as showrooms across America are trying to meet consumer demand amid supply-chain problems caused partly by the pandemic. Low interest rates, higher savings rates and government stimulus payments have increased demand, while automakers have struggled to weather a shortage of computer chips.
About 1,100 Porsches were on the cargo ship. Credit:Bloomberg
Matt Farah, a car enthusiast and editor of The Smoking Tire, had been waiting for his 2022 frozen-berry metallic Boxster Spyder with a retail price of about $US123,000 ($171,140) and modified to his precise specifications, since August. “The best sports car of all time, hands down,” he wrote.
He received disappointing news on Wednesday, he said: “I just got a call from my dealer. My car is now adrift, possibly on fire, in the middle of the ocean.”
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