Following a distress signal, the Portuguese navy jumped into action to save 22 crew members onboard a cargo ship that had caught fire in the Atlantic Ocean. The Felicity Ace reportedly raised the alarm after a fire had broken out on the hold. This is according to the Associated Press, which reports the 200-meter-long ship was bound for Davisville, Rhode Island, after setting sail from Emden, Germany.

In its cargo hold, countless Porsche and Volkswagen vehicles. While crew members were rescued, the high-value shipments are, most likely, destroyed. Twitter user Zerin Dube shared a screenshot from the "Porsche Track Your Dream" app, which acknowledges the ship is carrying Porsches.

It reads, "We are aware of an incident aboard the Felicity Ace, a specialized cargo ship carrying certain Porsche vehicles. Your dealership will provide you with additional information on how this impacts you as soon as we have additional information and know the full scope of the issue."

Abandoned near the Portuguese Azores Islands, the 17-year-old cargo shift is reportedly drifting eastwardly direction. FleetMon, a website that tracks registered ships, has said the Felicity Ace is being approached by a Portuguese Naval ship, to remain on standby as tug boats arrive. Only once the shipowner appoints a salvaging team, will we know the extent of the damage.

Motoring YouTuber Matt Farah took to Twitter to say his Porsche was one of the vehicles on the burning ship. "I just got the call from my dealer. My car is now adrift, possibly on fire, in the middle of the ocean," said Farah. Reportedly, his Boxster 718 Spyder had been ordered as far back as August last year. This tragedy has got to hurt, especially for eager customers awaiting their brand new Porsches.

This isn't the first time several Porsches have been destroyed while being transported. In 2019, a car carrier also caught fire and sank off the Bay of Biscay. With over 33 Porsches and numerous Audis onboard, the destruction was already severe. But the loss of four GT2 RS models made it even worse, as the rare supercar had already ceased production at the time. Thankfully, Porsche restarted the production line and delivered new cars to customers.

While we're unaware of any limited edition or specialty Porsches on board the Felicity Ace, Porsche will undoubtedly get to work and replace the vehicles lost forever to the Atlantic Ocean. While tragic, we're thankful that the crew got out unscathed, as this incident could have been a lot worse.