Crew and passengers escaped injury after a huge explosion rocked a ropax at the Chinese port of Weihai.

Video shot from the quayside showed a ball of flame erupting from the bow, following by a fire that sent plumes of black smoke billowing into the air.

The 2,300-passenger Zhong Hua Fu Qiang (built 2020) was en route to Dalian when smoke emerged from a truck loaded on board on 19 April, Chinese media reported.