A cargo ship carrying thousands of luxury cars, including brands like Mercedes Benz, Porsche, Audi, | Bentley, and Lamborghini, has sunk to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. The ship, known as the Felicity Ace, was on its way from Germany to Rhode Island when it caught fire and was abandoned by its crew.
The fire broke out on the 656-foot-long ship on February 16, while it was sailing 90 nautical miles southwest of Portugal's Azores. All 22 crew members were safely rescued and taken to a local hotel.
The cause of the fire is still unknown, but some speculate it could have been due to a malfunction with an electric car's lithium-ion battery.
The ship, registered to Panama and operated by Japanese shipping line Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), was carrying an estimated $400 million worth of vehicles. It now lies on the seabed some 3,000 meters down, near the Azores, about 900 miles west of Portugal.
Porsche confirmed that a number of its cars were among the cargo. "We are already working to replace every car affected by this incident and the first new cars will be built soon," said Angus Fitton, Vice President of PR at Porsche Cars North America. Volkswagen, which owns all the car brands on the ship, also confirmed that its vehicles were on board. The company assured that insurance would cover any vehicle damage.
The Felicity Ace was capable of carrying over 17,000 metric tons of cargo, which means possibly thousands of cars are now at the bottom of the ocean. The Portuguese Navy said that as of Thursday, the fire was still ongoing, and an ocean patrol vessel remains on site to monitor the abandoned ship.