According to a report from USA Today, a massive cargo ship transporting thousands of luxury cars, including 1,000 Porsches, was abandoned by its 22-member crew and set adrift across the Atlantic Ocean still smoking after it caught fire near Terceira Island in the Azores, the Portuguese island territory.
The ship departed from Emden, Germany, on February 10 and was scheduled to arrive in Davisville, Rhode Island, on Wednesday before the fire erupted. The crew members were airlifted to safety by a helicopter, as seen in the above video.
Although authorities did say exactly how much cargo was on the 650-foot, 60,000-ton ship, the automotive Web site The Drive reported that it was also carrying 4,000 vehicles from the Volkswagen Group, including 189 Bentleys and an unspecified number of Audis.
A spokeswoman for Porsche Cars North America confirmed to The New York Times Thursday evening that 1,100 of their vehicles were on board the ship and said that any concerned customers should contact their dealer.
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