Historical event date: June 4, 2026. Four workers died and at least 11 people were injured when a barge exploded at a shipyard in Pasacaballos, an industrial district of Cartagena, Colombia. City authorities activated an emergency hospital plan while multiple agencies responded to the fire and casualties.
The vessel was undergoing maintenance at a yard on the Canal del Dique when the explosion occurred on Thursday morning, according to information from Cartagena's mayor's office and the district health department, known as Dadis. Rescue personnel found the four workers dead at the site after bringing the flames under control.
Survivors sustained burns and other injuries of varying seriousness. Most were first taken to the Pasacaballos health centre, which put special industrial-emergency procedures into effect. Some patients were later transferred to higher-level clinics elsewhere in Cartagena. Sabrina Van-Leeden, director of the ESE Hospital Local Cartagena de Indias, said her organization treated 11 patients, mostly for minor burns, before transferring those who needed more complex care. The report said some had been discharged while others remained under observation.
Firefighters, civil defence personnel and Cartagena's disaster-risk office joined the response. The city's emergency coordination centre, local hospital teams and Ecopetrol staff also participated. Dadis director Rafael Navarro España said the power of the blast left no opportunity to provide medical assistance to the four people who died at the scene.
Health authorities maintained a contingency arrangement in Pasacaballos in case further victims emerged or treatment capacity had to expand. Dadis offered condolences and said agencies remained coordinated to care for those injured. Mayor Dumek Turbay shared images of the fire and stated that the 11 survivors were out of danger but still under medical observation at that point.
Navigation on the Canal del Dique was restricted during emergency operations by Concesión Ecosistemas del Dique. The measure was intended to give rescue and technical teams room to work. The explosion also alarmed workers and residents in Pasacaballos, an area associated with shipyards, maritime industry and port logistics.
Authorities had not established a cause. Early speculation focused on whether petroleum-derived material might have been aboard, but no official body had confirmed that account. Technical and judicial teams continued gathering evidence to determine what happened inside the barge and whether unsafe conditions existed before the detonation.
The verified initial toll remains four deaths and 11 injuries. Questions about ignition, materials aboard the vessel, maintenance procedures and any responsibility require the outcome of the investigation. Treating the early petroleum theory as fact would go beyond the findings released by Cartagena officials.
