Thankfully, all 22 crew members of the Felicity Ace has been rescued and no one was hurt
When specialised cargo ship Felicity Ace departed Emden, Germany on 10 February, no one had expected that the ship would catch fire so close to its destination, which was due to arrive in Davisville, Rhode Island, USA on 16 February. During the time of the incident, the ship had been around 200 miles from Terceira Island in the Azores, which was Portuguese territory.
Timely rescue for crew members
On the morning of 16 February, a distress signal from the ship was sent to the Portugese authorities and the Portugese Navy patrol boat and four merchant ships in the area soon responded to the call. According to reports, the 22 crew members had evacuated from the vessel in two lifeboats and were picked up by Greek-owned Polembros Shipping Limited’s Resilient Warrior.
The Felicity Ace was built in 2005 with a carrying capacity of 17,738 tons, and could carry close to 4,000 vehicles at full load. At the time of the incident, it was estimated that the vehicles on board came close to a full load, which included luxury vehicles like Porches, Bentleys and Audis.
Volkswagen Group, who used the Felicity Ace often, also had vehicles on board. According to Volkswagen, investigations of the incident are underway, “We are aware of an incident today involving a cargo ship transporting Volkswagen Group vehicles across the Atlantic and we are working with local authorities and the shipping company to investigate the cause of the incident.”
Although the loss of goods is unfortunate, thankfully, no lives were lost. For seafarers, this incident is a good reminder to keep in mind the safety precautions and evacuation plans so that we may all return home safe and sound.
Source:
The Drive
Crewing Online Media Team
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