Burning ship with £120 million worth of supercars sinks in the Atlantic

The Felicity Ace, which was carrying hundreds of supercars worth up to £120 million, has sunk into the Atlantic Ocean with its cargo of flashy cars 13 days after a fire broke out on it.

The transporter ship was taking the supercars to customers in the United States when a fire broke out 250 miles off the Azores on February 16, forcing its crew to abandon it for their safety. The 22-member crew had been evacuated by a Portuguese Air Force helicopter, reports Reuters.

Meanwhile, ocean-going tugboats carrying firefighting equipment were deployed to try to cool the 650ft. vessel's hull by drenching it. The Panama-flagged ship was being towed before it went under, but the efforts to retrieve it were hampered by the fire and the sea conditions.

Joao Mendes Cabecas, the captain of the nearest port on the island of Faial, told the agency that the ship sank due to structural problems caused by the fire and rough seas. He added, "When the towing started... water started to come in. The ship lost its stability and sank."

The ship, which regularly ferries expensive cars, had set sail from Emden, Germany, and was expected to arrive on the port of Davisville in the US state of Rhode Island on February 23.

A vessel of Felicity Ace's size can carry at least 4,000 vehicles, but it is not known how many cars were present on it when it sank. European car makers have also declined to confirm how many vehicles and models were on board, but the dealers have been contacting their customers in the US to inform them of the fire.

Portuguese authorities have said that the ship was carrying both electric and non-electric vehicles. A spokesman for Porsche previously confirmed that 1,100 of the company's cars were on board. As per reports, the luxury fleet also included 189 Bentleys.

Angus Fitton, vice president of PR at Porsche Cars North America, Inc. told The Associated Press, "We are already working to replace every car affected by this incident and the first new cars will be built soon."

It is suspected that lithium batteries used in the electric vehicles could have caused the fire, but authorities have said they have no firm evidence to determine what started it. The ship was also carrying 2,200 tons of fuel and 2,200 tons of oil. Only a few pieces of wreckage and a small patch of oil were visible where the ship went down.