Explosive Fireball Rocks Major Chinese Port

An explosion triggered a fireball on a container ship loaded with hazardous materials at the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in China. No injuries were reported. Surveillance footage showed a massive burst of smoke and flames. The ship carried Class 5 dangerous goods, though specifics were not disclosed.

A powerful explosion set off a fireball on a container ship loaded with hazardous goods at a major port on China's Pacific coast, state media and authorities said Friday.

Surveillance camera video posted online by state broadcaster CCTV showed a huge burst of white smoke followed by an orange and yellow fireball that dispersed debris and completely engulfed containers stacked at least three high.

No injuries were reported from the explosion and an ensuing fire at the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, just south of Shanghai and one of the largest in the world. A container on the docked ship is believed to have exploded, CCTV said. An aerial photo posted by the broadcaster showed black smoke rising from a stack of containers at one end of the ship and from an area on the dock. The rest of the ship and its containers appeared undamaged.

The Zhejiang Province Emergency Management Administration said the ship was loaded with Class 5 hazardous materials, but it didn't say what they were.

(With inputs from agencies.)