Hydrogen Fuel Bus Explosion in South Korea Causes 3 Severe Injuries
On December 23rd at around 11:10 AM local time, an explosion occurred at a hydrogen station in Mokhaeng-dong, Chungju, North Chungcheong Province, South Korea. A hydrogen fuel city bus that was being refueled suddenly exploded, causing three people to be severely injured. Local police and fire departments have launched a comprehensive investigation to determine the exact cause of the explosion.
According to Hydrogeninsight, the bus was refueling at the station when the explosion happened, and the scene was immediately sealed off by emergency rescue teams. A worker in his 30s at the charging station, referred to as A, suffered severe facial injuries from the explosion debris, and a bus driver in his 50s along with another person were also injured in the accident.
The fire department confirmed that the explosion did not cause a fire. Fire departments from Chungju City and North Chungcheong Province quickly arrived at the scene, stating that the source of the explosion may come from the hydrogen fuel cell "stack", a key component located at the bottom rear of the bus, responsible for converting hydrogen into electricity.
The involved bus was one of a batch of vehicles purchased by Chungju City in August 2022, costing 600 million won each (approximately 300,300 USD at the current exchange rate), aiming to improve its public transportation system with cleaner energy alternatives. After the accident, Chungju City decided to suspend the operation of all 18 hydrogen buses in the city, awaiting thorough safety inspections.
It was reported that the accident vehicle showed no abnormalities while driving, but the fault warning light on the dashboard had been on since last weekend, indicating a possible issue with the fuel cell. After detecting the fault code, Hyundai Motors advised sending the vehicle to its service center for inspection. The vehicle was preparing to go to the service center when the accident occurred.
The Korea Gas Safety Corporation has initiated a detailed investigation and recovered parts from the bus to analyze the cause of the explosion. Relevant departments, including the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea Transport Safety Authority, are working closely with the bus manufacturer to investigate the cause of the accident and implement necessary safety improvement measures.
