Giant Explosion Rips Through Ship Near Site of Baltimore Bridge Collapse Disaster (Video)

Baltimore was shaken Monday evening when a massive fire and explosion tore through a bulk carrier ship in the Patapsco River — eerily close to the spot where the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed last year in one of the nation’s worst infrastructure disasters.

The Baltimore City Fire Department said calls came in just after 6:30 p.m. reporting an explosion aboard a foreign-flagged commercial vessel. Fireboats rushed to the scene and found the 751-foot W-Sapphire scarred with damage “consistent with a fire and explosion,” according to department spokesman John Marsh.

Miraculously, all 23 crew members survived. “Every person on board has been accounted for, and no injuries have been reported,” Marsh confirmed. The ship remained afloat and was corralled by tugboats before being escorted to a Coast Guard-designated anchorage zone for inspection.

The W-Sapphire, built in 2012 and registered in Liberia, had been en route to Port Louis, Mauritius, with an expected arrival date in late September, according to shipping databases. Now, its journey is on indefinite pause.

For Baltimore, the explosion is another painful reminder of maritime risks in a city still reeling from last year’s catastrophe. In March 2024, the 947-foot cargo vessel Dali lost power and rammed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge, killing six road workers and sending shockwaves across the country. It was the deadliest bridge collapse in the U.S. in more than a decade and crippled one of the East Coast’s busiest shipping hubs.

“The harbor hasn’t been the same since the bridge went down,” said Baltimore resident Charles Henson, who lives near the water. “Now to see another explosion out here — people are scared, and honestly, they’re angry.”

The cause of the W-Sapphire blast remains under investigation. Federal authorities, including the Coast Guard, are expected to probe whether mechanical failure, improper handling of cargo, or another factor triggered the blast.

For locals, the sight of flames near the same waters where tragedy struck last year was chilling. “It felt like déjà vu,” one dockworker told reporters. “We heard the boom, saw smoke, and people just froze. Everyone thought of the bridge.”

The Francis Scott Key Bridge, opened in 1977, carried over 12 million vehicles in 2023 before it was destroyed. Its collapse snarled supply chains, devastated port traffic, and sparked urgent calls for infrastructure upgrades across the nation.

Now, with another maritime disaster in Baltimore Harbor, many residents say the city feels cursed by the water. “First the bridge, now this ship,” Henson added. “It’s like Baltimore can’t catch a break.”