On the morning of Wednesday, July 16, the Dutch-flagged cargo vessel FWN Adriatic caught fire near the Noordkasteel Bridge in the Port of Antwerp.

The vessel was reportedly carrying gypsum boards and vehicles at the time of the incident. Thick black smoke billowed from the ship following the outbreak of the fire, prompting local authorities to issue a BE-alert, advising residents to close doors and windows and turn off ventilation systems.

At the time of the incident, the FWN Adriatic had arrived in Antwerp from the Port of Immingham, Netherlands.

The Antwerp Fire Department, supported by a port firefighting vessel, tackled the blaze both from the quay and from the water. “We currently do not have information about the specific types of vehicles on board,” said spokesperson Nienke Neerlinck of the Antwerp Fire Department. In order to reduce smoke spread, the ship's hatches were closed, which significantly diminished the smoke. Firefighters used carbon dioxide (CO₂) to further suppress the fire while minimizing the generation of additional smoke.

The Port of Antwerp-Bruges issued a notification confirming that the FWN Adriatic had caught fire, producing heavy smoke, and urged caution for vessels operating in the affected area. “As a precaution, ventilation systems in the vicinity should be turned off temporarily,” the alert stated. Vessels navigating between Quay 5 and the America Terminal and between Berths 345 and 347 were especially advised to proceed with caution.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

The FWN Adriatic (IMO 9970533, MMSI 245285000) is a cargo vessel built in 2025, currently sailing under the flag of the Netherlands. The vessel is operated by ForestWave, a shipping and offshore logistics provider founded in 2003. Based in the Netherlands, ForestWave also has offices in the UK and Spain and manages a fleet of approximately 30 multipurpose vessels ranging from 5,000 to 12,500 DWT. The company is part of the Spliethoff Group, headquartered in Amsterdam.