Is a video of a "gas cargo ship" hitting a bridge and exploding real? No, that's not true: The viral video of the explosion that seems to lift part of the ship over the bridge originated on a TikTok account that indicated it was made using AI tools. The account frequently posts AI generated videos involving accidents with ships, including other bridge collisions and explosions.
The video (archived here) was uploaded to TikTok on April 25, 2025 with a description that read:
Gas Cargo ship hit the bridge and collapse . . . . . . #ships #fyp #universe #tik_tok #tiktoknews #tiktok #ai
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Mon Apr 28 07:04:57 2025 UTC)
Here is the video in question:
@viralwibe1 Gas Cargo ship hit the bridge and collapse . . . . . . #ships #fyp #universe #tik_tok #tiktoknews #tiktok #ai ♬ Wave Sounds - Ocean Sounds
The @viralwibe1 account on TikTok frequently posts other AI-generated videos involving shipping and other accidents:
Apart from the "AI" hashtag in the description there were other clues in the video indicating it wasn't showing a real event.
An entire second ship, maybe even a submarine,appears to emerge from the explosion as if nothing happened:
(Image: screenshot collage created by Lead Stories)
There is also the red-and-white crane boom that magically transforms into something that looks like a truck convoy or a train, with segments detaching and changing size:
(Image: screenshot collage created by Lead Stories)
Finally, the buffer guarding the bridge pillar appears to start moving before the ship even hits it:
(Image: screenshot collage created by Lead Stories)
