Shark Tank Explodes onto Shoppers

shark-tank-video
Shoppers flee in terror as a shark tank bursts at a mall in China. (Image credit: Daily News)

An aquarium filled with sharks and other sea life burst at a shopping center in Shanghai, China, pouring 33 tons of water onto people in the mall. A security camera captured the Dec. 18 accident on video.

Sixteen people were injured as jagged shards of 6-inch (15 centimeters) glass exploded onto the scene, according to the Daily News. Most victims suffered cuts from the broken glass, while one person also suffered a broken ankle.

Countless fish, including three lemon sharks, were killed, as were dozens of turtles.

"It was horrible, like a bomb explosion," one mall employee said, as reported in the Daily News. The video, which can be viewed here, shows one man swept back several feet as the wall of glass burst without warning.

Some reports blamed shoddy construction: A broken water pipe in the display killed three sharks in the 2-year-old shark tank earlier this year, according to the Daily News.

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Marc Lallanilla
Live Science Contributor
Marc Lallanilla has been a science writer and health editor at About.com and a producer with ABCNews.com. His freelance writing has appeared in the Los Angeles Times and TheWeek.com. Marc has a Master's degree in environmental planning from the University of California, Berkeley, and an undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin.