On Monday evening (August 4th), a fireworks festival was held in Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, attracting a large number of people to come and watch. However, during the event, the barge used for launching fireworks accidentally caught fire, causing a large number of fireworks to continuously explode and ignite. Fortunately, the five crew members on board were able to jump into the sea and were rescued in time. Currently, the cause of the accident is under further investigation.
According to Japanese media reports, this fireworks festival was part of the “2025 Minato Mirai Smart Festival” held in the Minato Mirai 21 area of Yokohama Port. The event kicked off at 5:30 p.m. on Monday and planned to launch around 20,000 fireworks starting from 7:30 p.m., with a duration of about 25 minutes.
However, around 7:45 p.m., as the dazzling fireworks were blooming magnificently to cheerful background music, the barge on the sea suddenly caught fire. Upon noticing the abnormal situation, the audience immediately alerted authorities and notified the organizers, who promptly announced the suspension of the event.
The Kanagawa Prefectural Police and Yokohama Maritime Security Department stated that a total of 8 platform boats were used for the fireworks festival, with 2 of them catching fire. At the time of the fire, five pyrotechnicians were working on one of the boats. Fortunately, they quickly put on life jackets, jumped into the sea before the situation got out of control, and were later rescued by the Yokohama Fire Department’s firefighting boat. According to the fire department, only one person sustained minor injuries and was taken to the hospital for treatment. The other burning platform boat was unoccupied.
Footage from the scene showed flames continuously billowing out from the boat, with some fireworks exploding on the boat before launching into the sky. The scene was engulfed in flames and thick smoke rising into the sky, accompanied by sporadic explosions, creating a frightening sight.
It was reported that around 10:15 p.m., some people in the distance still witnessed flickering orange flames on the sea surface, with fireworks occasionally igniting due to the residual fire.
The organizers issued an apology statement on their official website that night, stating, “Due to the fire accident, the fireworks festival was suspended midway, and we deeply apologize. The festival’s executive committee will thoroughly investigate the cause of the fire.”
Many spectators interviewed still had lingering fear from the incident. A woman in her fifties who was on the boat watching the fireworks exclaimed in surprise, “Suddenly, I heard loud ‘bangs’, looked down, and saw fireballs on the sea surface, followed by rising black smoke. I felt there was a fire, and it really scared me.” A man in his forties who was with her expressed, “The fireworks didn’t fully launch into the sky but exploded directly below or on the boat. I was worried that it might fly towards us.”
According to information on the organizer’s official website, this event has been jointly organized by Yokohama City and local businesses since 2018, and it is one of the important summer events in Yokohama, attracting a large number of visitors every year. Despite this unfortunate incident this year, no major disaster occurred, fortunately.
Currently, the Kanagawa Prefectural Police and fire department are conducting a comprehensive investigation into the cause of the accident.