The ship, Felicity Ace, which was traveling from Emden, Germany, where Volkswagen has a factory, to Davisville, in the U.S. state of Rhode Island, burns more than 100 km from the Azores islands, Portugal, February 18, 2022.
Reuters
- Firefighting boats were en route to the Felicity Ace, a burning ship carrying luxury vehicles, the WSJ reported Saturday.
- The cargo ship caught fire near Portugal Wednesday while carrying 4,000 cars from Germany to the US.
- In response to questions over whether it could sink, the parent company of its operator told WSJ the ship remains stable.
Help is on the way for a cargo ship burning at sea with thousands of luxury vehicles in tow.
On Saturday, firefighting boats were en route to the Felicity Ace. The first was expected to arrive Sunday, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The 60,000-ton cargo ship is carrying roughly 4,000 vehicles built by Germany’s Volkswagen Group. It was traveling from Emden, Germany, where Volkswagen has a factory, to Davisville, Rhode Island, when it caught fire near Portugal on Wednesday. The Portuguese Navy evacuated all 22 crew members onboard.
A spokesperson for MOL Ship Management (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., which owns the company operating the Felicity Ace, told the Journal Saturday that the 650-foot ship is still burning but hasn’t leaked any oil and remains stable with regards to concerns it could sink.
MOL told The Journal it expects the first of the vessels carrying firefighting equipment to the Felicity Ace to arrive Sunday from Gibraltar. A second firefighting boat will come Monday, and a salvage ship from Rotterdam, Netherlands, is expected to arrive on Wednesday or Thursday.
The cause of the fire is not yet clear.
“It will be months before we have completed an investigation and know what happened,” a spokesman for MOL told the Journal.
In the US, the Volkswagen Group sells Volkswagen, Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini, Bentley, and Bugatti vehicles. A Porsche spokesperson previously confirmed to Insider that “a number” of Porsche cars are onboard the ship but said it was too early to know if any could be salvaged.
YouTuber and car enthusiast has said a New Jersey dealer has confirmed his vehicle, a 2022 Porsche 718 Boxster Spyder, is also among the cargo. Farah says the sports car was supposed to be delivered to him next week.
MOL and the Volkswagen Group didn’t immediately respond to Insider’s requests for comment.
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