A cargo ship full of luxury cars on fire in the middle of the Ocean

A 656 foot-long Felicity Ace roll-on/roll-off car-carrying ship burning off Portugal’s Azores. [Courtesy]

A cargo ship with luxury cars onboard has been abandoned in the Atlantic Ocean after it caught fire.

CNN reports that the 656 foot-long Felicity Ace roll-on/roll-off car-carrying ship was abandoned off Portugal’s Azores.

The ship is reportedly carrying luxury German cars, including Porsches and Volkswagens.

The ship was sailing from Emden, Germany to Davisville, Rhode Island.

At the time of the outbreak of the fire, the ship was sailing 90 nautical miles southwest of Portugal’s Azores, according to a report by CNN quoting a statement by the Portuguese Navy.

After the fire broke out in the cargo hold, it spread and forced all 22 crew members to abandon the ship. The crew were safely picked up and taken to a local hotel.

One of the cars belongs to a journalist and automotive show host, Matt Farah.

The American confirmed in a tweet that his Porsche 718 Spyder was among the affected vehicles on board.

“The dealer confirmed that my car, along with at least a dozen other vehicles they were expecting, is on that boat,” Farah said. “They had no further information for me beyond confirming my car was on the boat and said that as soon as Porsche Cars North America has a plan of any kind with how to proceed, that they would share the plans with me.”

Registered to Panama, the ship is operated by Japanese shipping line Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL). MOL has not responded to the request for comment.

“While it is too early to confirm what occurred and next steps, we are — along with our colleagues at Porsche AG — supporting our customers and our dealers as best we can to find solutions,” Angus Fitton, Vice President of PR at Porsche Cars North America told CNN Business.

The Felicity Ace can carry over 17,000 metric tons of cargo though it was not yet clear the exact number of cars onboard the burning ship.