A luxury car ship burns in the middle of the ocean... and the losses are in the millions
A giant cargo ship caught fire in the mid-Atlantic Ocean, and while rescue teams managed to evacuate the crew, expensive cars on board were engulfed in flames.
The British newspaper "Daily Mail" reported that the Portuguese navy rescued the 22-person crew of the ship, and transferred them to lifeboats.
The ship, which was carrying Porsche and Volkswagen cars, caught fire near the Azores in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
The Portuguese navy said in a statement that the ship "Felicity Ace" sounded the alarm after a fire broke out in the waiting area.
She added that the cause of the fire was unknown.
The ship had set sail from Germany on February 10 and was heading to the port of Davisville in the US state of Rhode Island, according to online ship tracking.
The ship, which can carry up to 4,000 vehicles, was expected to arrive in Davisville on February 23.
The ship regularly transports cars for Volkswagen, Lamborghini, Audi and Porsche.
The Portuguese Navy stated that one of the patrol boats and four merchant ships had assisted in the rescue operation.
Portuguese Air Force aircraft were also called in to assist.
After the distress signal was sent, a Portuguese Navy patrol with four other merchant ships in the area rushed towards the spot where the doomed ship was.
The crew left the ship and boarded the lifeboats.
A person who owns a YouTube channel said he owned one of the Porsche cars that were on board the burning ship.
He added that he ordered the car last August, and was excited to get it in February, but said sarcastically that it would turn into an artificial reef.
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