BREAKING: Barge Explodes On Lake Of The Ozarks, Driver Miraculously Escapes Serious Injuries

LAKE OF THE OZARKS, Mo. — A barge exploded in a ball of fire on Thursday morning on the Gravois Arm of Lake of the Ozarks, injuring one person.

Photos & video of the explosion are below.

The incident occurred at the 7.5 Mile Marker of the Gravois Arm, not far from Coconuts Bar & Grill. The barge was being driven by an employee of Ozark Barge & Dock Service, according to the owner of the company Nina Gennetten. She said the driver happened to have stepped off the barge and onto the dock for a moment, when the barge exploded.

Gennetten said the driver likely would have been killed if he had been on the barge when it burst into flames. She was relieved to report the driver did have some burns but had escaped serious injuries. He was taken to the emergency room for treatment. “You can replace a barge,” she said. “You can’t replace a human being.”

After the explosion, the dock drifted to the shore between two other docks and burned, but did not catch any other structures on fire. Rocky Mount and Gravois Fire Protection Districts responded with fire boats.