Felicity Ace
 Felicity Ace at the Port of Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Felicity Ace |
| Owner | Snowscape Car Carriers |
| Operator | Mitsui O.S.K. Lines |
| Port of registry | Panama City,  Panama |
| Builder | Shin Kurushima Dockyard |
| Yard number | 5306 |
| Laid down | 9 December 2004 |
| Launched | 2 July 2005 |
| Completed | 5 October 2005 |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | Capsized and sank on 1 March 2022 after a fire |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Nippon Kaiji Kyōkai cargo ship |
| Typ | Ro-Ro car carrier |
| Tonnage | 60,118 GT |
| Displacement | 17,738 t (17,458 long tons) |
| Length | 199.99 m (656.1 ft) |
| Beam | 32.26 m (105.8 ft) |
| Installed power | 1 Mitsubishi diesel engine |
| Propulsion | single shaft, 1 screw |
| Speed | 22 knots (41 km/h; 25 mph) |
Felicity Ace was a roll-on/roll-off cargo ship (Pure Car/Truck Carrier) built by Shin Kurushima Dockyard in 2005, owned and operated by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines of Japan, and registered in Panama. It caught fire in February 2022 south of the Azores, then capsized and sank in early March.
2022 fire
The ship sailed from Emden, Germany, on 10 February 2022, carrying 3,965 Volkswagen cars, including Audi, Porsche, Lamborghini and Bentley models.[1][2][3] Analysts estimated the damage caused by their loss to be 334 or 401 million USD.[4]
The cargo section caught fire on 16 February 2022, while crossing the North Atlantic heading for Davisville, Rhode Island.[5] At this time, the ship was about 320 kilometres (200 mi) from Terceira Island in the Azores.[6] All 22 crew members abandoned the ship and survived, being evacuated by the Portuguese Navy.[7][8] The Azorean harbourmaster told Reuters that lithium-ion batteries in electric cars ignited and the fire could only be extinguished with special equipment. Contrary to speculations in the media, It is unknown whether an electric car caused the fire.[9][10]
Felicity Ace was being followed by the Portuguese Navy patrol ship NRP Setúbal, approximately 170 kilometres (110 mi) southwest off the Azores, waiting for rescuers to try to extinguish the fire and tow the vessel to shore.[11] On 18 February, Smit Salvage were contracted to salvage the ship.[12]
Two large tugs with firefighting equipment were ordered to support the vessel from Gibraltar. In addition, a salvage craft with firefighting equipment was set to arrive from Rotterdam on 23 or 24 February.[13] A Portuguese Navy spokesman said that Felicity Ace was unlikely to be towed to a port in the Azores due to its size.[14]
The ship drifted guideless and burning on the Atlantic for about a week. A team from Smit was able to board and stabilize the ship. The fire was out at this time and a towing connection to a tug was also established.[15]
Sinking
On 1 March 2022, Felicity Ace was reported to have capsized and sunk.[10][16] A Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) spokesperson said that the ship developed a 45-degree list to starboard and then unexpectedly capsized and sank at approximately 9 am local time about 220 mi (350 km) off the Azores in rough seas. MOL was unable to confirm if any oil pollution had occurred. The Portuguese Navy said that oily residue and wreckage was visible at the surface, the water was about 3,000 m (9,800 ft) deep at the sinking site, and that naval forces would continue to monitor the area. A risk-modeling analyst estimated the value of the goods aboard the ship at $438 million, of which $401 million were cars, and estimated Volkswagen's losses at $155 million.[16]
See also
References
- ^ Hägler, Max. "Führerlos im Atlantik: 3965 VW-Autos". Süddeutsche.de (in German). Retrieved 18 February 2022.
- ^ "Burning Ship Drifts In Atlantic With Lamborghinis, Porsches, Audis Aboard". NDTV.com. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
- ^ "Felicity Ace: Portuguese ship carrying Porsche & Volkswagen cars catches fire in Atlantic Ocean". meaww.com. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
- ^ Raymunt, Monica (25 February 2022). "VW fears most of its cars on burning ship are beyond salvage". Daily News. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
- ^ Korn, Jennifer. "A cargo ship full of luxury cars is on fire and adrift in the middle of the Atlantic". CNN. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
- ^ Patel, Vimal (18 February 2022). "Ship Carrying 1,100 Porsches and Other Luxury Cars Is Burning and Adrift". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
- ^ Helicóptero da Força Aérea resgata 22 tripulantes de navio após incêndio a bordo, retrieved 18 February 2022
- ^ Patel, Vimal (18 February 2022). "Ship Carrying 1,100 Porsches and Other Luxury Cars Is Burning and Adrift". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
- ^ "Golem.de: IT-News für Profis". www.golem.de. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
- ^ a b Haun, Eric (1 March 2022). "Burnt car carrier Felicity Ace sinks". Marine Link. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ^ "4000 VW-Fahrzeuge geladen: Autofrachter brennt im Atlantik – Mannschaft gerettet". Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger (in German). 18 February 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
- ^ magazin, Sina Osterholt, Anna Driftschröer, manager. "Smit Salvage soll die Autos auf dem brennenden Schiff "Felicity Ace" löschen". www.manager-magazin.de (in German). Retrieved 21 February 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "MOL car carrier on fire, abandoned, Atlantic UPDATE Feb 19". Fleetmon. 16 February 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
- ^ Franklin, Jonathan (17 February 2022). "A burning cargo ship full of Porsches and VWs is adrift in the mid-Atlantic". NPR. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
- ^ magazin, manager. "Volkswagen: Feuer auf Schiff "Felicity Ace" mit 1100 Porsche und VW-Elektroautos ist aus, Frachter an Schlepper gebunden". www.manager-magazin.de (in German). Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ^ a b Raymunt, Monica (1 March 2022). "Burnt-Out Ship Carrying Porsches and Lamborghinis Sinks in Rough Seas". bloomberg.com. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
"There doesn't appear to be any oil pollution yet -- they're checking on that," the [Mitsui O.S.K.] spokesperson said.
External links
