Viral Dashcam Footage Captures Moment Cargo Ship Engulfed in Massive Explosion

Remarkable footage of a cargo ship explosion in Ulsan, South Korea has gone viral on social media. [...]

By Michael Hein

Remarkable footage of a cargo ship explosion in Ulsan, South Korea has gone viral on social media. The dashcam video shows a ship full of petroleum going up in flames, and people everywhere are marveling at the terrifying column of flame and smoke. All of the crew members were reportedly rescued.

The explosion took place on Friday, Sept. 27 at around 11 a.m. local time, according to a report by the Korea Times. Authorities are still investigating how and why the fire started, but they know that the 25,000-ton vessel was carrying highly flammable oil. The ship was crewed by 25 workers as well as the captain, all of whom were rescued before the explosion itself.

As the video shows, the ship burst into a plume of flame just off of the shoreline, visible from all around. The fire burst upward, first in an apparently random ball before taking the shape of a singular column underneath.

The writhing mass of red and orange soon gave way to acrid black smoke as the petroleum burned up in one massive blaze. Local firefighters reportedly quelled the disaster without incident.

The fire was caught on camera from multiple angles, in photos and in videos, as people nearby stopped to watch in awe. Soon, social media did the same as the footage circulated online. Many people were at a loss for words, and expressed their gratitude that no one was hurt.

"How amazing that no one was killed," one person tweeted.

Others saw it as a perfect occasion to promote petroleum reduction in favor of more safe and sustainable fuel sources.

"Time to fully adopt electric vehicles as quickly as possible," someone wrote. "So we no [longer] need to risk transporting large amounts of fossil fuels."

Many users also speculated about the possibility of sabotage, though there is no evidence of that so far. However, local authorities are investigating the fire in detail for any hints about how to avoid these disasters in the future.

The fire took place in Ulsan, a port city to the southeast of South Korea's capital, Seoul. The tanker was in a berth at Yeompo Quay when it lit up, and the explosion spread the fire to another nearby vessel. The 25 crew members of the tanker were all foreign nationals, while there were 21 crew members on the other ship.

Three of the foreign nationals were injured in the fire, and nine South Koreans from the other ship were as well. Another six rescue workers were hurt, including one serious injury. The rest all suffered burns and smoke inhalation.

0comments
Start the Conversation

of