





When a 33-ton shark tank suddenly exploded last week in along busy Shanghai pedestrian shopping mall, it happened so quickly that not even one camera-happy bystander was able to film it.

The moment, however, was all captured on closed circuit security camera.

The dramatic just-released video shows four people standing immediately in front the gigantic 23 ft-by-10 ft shark aquarium at the Oriental Shopping Center moments before it shattered. Pedestrians could be seen passing by behind them.

One unidentified man, who was the closest the glass, is seen holding up what seems to be camera to take pictures of the sharks. Three others are shown engaged in conversation, not even paying attention to the tank.

Suddenly something changed off-screen and silent security video showed all four stopped in their tracks. Before any of them had time to react, a rush of water and large shards of glass swallow them all in an instant, pushing them all out onto the street.

The video shows that the force of the explosion was so strong, it tore down cosmetic stands inside the shopping center on the other side of aquarium.

The December 19 explosion left 15 bystanders injured and three sharks dead.

The Shanghai Daily reported that eight of those injured were believed to be customers while the other seven were all mall staff.

There is still no official explanation as to why the shark tank exploded. The popular shark tank was only two years old but it has been speculated that a sudden cold snap that day in Shanghai may have contributed to thick aquarium glass shattering.

Chen Yongping, an official with the shopping center management, told the Shanghai Daily that after this accident that they "will not build an aquarium again in the future."