‘Powerful’ explosion hits ship at China port

BEIJING: A “powerful explosion” ripped through a container ship on Friday (Aug 9) in eastern China’s Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, one of the world’s busiest.

No deaths or injuries were immediately reported from the blast.

Footage showed a ball of flames engulfing much of the ship’s deck and spewing debris high into the air.

The explosion occurred at around 1.40pm local time on the bow of the YM Mobility, moored at the port in Zhejiang province, state news agency Xinhua reported.

Taiwanese shipping firm Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp confirmed that one of its cargo ships caught fire.

The ship, docked at the port’s Beilun terminal, was transporting hazardous goods, the Ningbo Maritime Search and Rescue Centre said.

CCTV, citing preliminary findings from authorities, said the goods included lithium batteries and tert-Butyl peroxybenzoate, an organic compound that is flammable and explosive and should not be stored in an environment over 30 degrees Celsius.

“An investigation is underway” to determine the cause of the incident, Xinhua said.

One video clip showed red fire engines spraying jets of water onto the charred vessel as black smoke billowed into the sky.

State broadcaster CCTV said the fire had been extinguished by 5pm and that the local coast guard had been brought in to assist with the response.

“After preliminary verification, all dock workers and vessel staff are safe and there are no casualties,” CCTV reported.

The vast Ningbo-Zhoushan port is one of the world’s busiest in terms of cargo throughput.