No injuries after explosion aboard bulker in Patapsco River, officials say

An explosion occurred aboard a commercial vessel in the Patapsco River near the former Key Bridge site on Monday evening around 6:30 pm.

The Baltimore City Fire Department (BCFD) noted in a Facebook post that the vessel remained afloat with 23 people on board and no injuries were reported.

According to Baltimore City Fire, firefighters responded by both land and water, including the department’s fireboats.

They saw signs of damage consistent with a fire and explosion when they arrived at the scene of the W-Sapphire 751-foot bulk carrier.

All 23 people on board the Liberia-flagged bulk carrier were accounted for and uninjured. As it is reported, the vessel was being assisted by tug boats.

Authorities say this is a unified incident involving the ship’s owner, the Baltimore City Fire Department, the Port of Baltimore, and the United States Coast Guard.

Fireboats remain on scene as the Coast Guard and other agencies begin their investigation.

The 81681-dwt W-Sapphire (2012-built), managed by an Athens-based company, will be moved to a designated anchorage area and held there until cleared by the Coast Guard.

The BCFD operates the region’s only full-time fireboat capable of responding to not only fires but any maritime emergency on the Chesapeake Bay. The 87-foot John R. Frazier was acquired in 2007 through federal grant funding and supports both the City of Baltimore and the Port of Baltimore.

The US Coast Guard confirmed the incident mentioning that an explosion occurred aboard the 751-foot merchant vessel W-Sapphire in Baltimore Harbor, Monday.

Responders from the Coast Guard Sector Maryland – National Capital Region were dispatched to the area to assist.

No injuries have been reported at this time, and the cause of the explosion is under investigation.

A 2,000-yard safety zone around the incident location has been established, spanning from the Key Bridge to Brewerton Angle Channel LB “14,” according to the Coast Guard.

Reports state the fire has been extinguished and plans for the vessel are being formulated.

“The W-Sapphire was outbound from Baltimore Harbor with 23 crewmembers and 2 pilots aboard and was south of Fort Carroll at the time of the explosion. The report stated the vessel was transporting coal,” the US Coast Guard said in a statement.

According to reports received by claims specialist WK Webster, the bulk carrier (IMO: 9605645) experienced an explosion and fire while departing from Baltimore, USA, on August 18.

“It is reported that the fire was quickly extinguished with the assistance of the local Coast Guard and firefighters while the vessel was still underway,” WK Webster said on August 19, adding that the vessel later moved to anchor, with tug assistance, off Kent Island, Maryland for investigations into the cause of the explosion and, possibly, repairs.

This is a developing story. We will provide more updates as they become available.