Cause of 1-Million Liter Aquarium Collapse Remains a Mystery Despite Three Theories

Prosecutors say they have closed an investigation into a massive aquarium collapse in Berlin without uncovering the cause of the spectacular implosion that led to at least two injuries and the deaths of nearly 1,500 fish.

The 82-foot-tall AquaDom aquarium, located in the lobby of a hotel in the German capital, held about 1 million liters (264,000 gallons) of water, making it the world's largest.

Built in 2003, the colossal tank burst in the early morning hours of December 16, 2022. The powerful blast, which garnered worldwide attention, sent water, fish, and debris across the building and onto the street.

Only a few of the 1,500 tropical fish in the tank survived, as they were located in the lower portion of the cylinder. About 500 fish housed nearby were relocated to a neighboring aquarium and survived.

As about 100 firefighters responded to the incident, the hotel's occupants had to evacuate and wait in freezing temperatures outdoors — alongside hundreds of dead fish, Axios reported last year.

Engineer Christian Bonten, who investigated the incident said there were three possible scenarios that could have led to the tank's collapse.

First, he suggested there could have been an issue with the adhesive seam that held the cylinder together. Other possibilities are tied to a modernization that took place in 2020, which could have introduced cracks into the tank's base or dried out its acrylic walls.

Prosecutors had sought a responsible party for the implosion, but with Bonten's findings that multiple scenarios are plausible, they decided to close the case.

There are no plans to reconstruct the tank.

However, some private homeowners are taking on aquarium projects of their own. A recently-listed New Jersey mansion boasts a 20,000-gallon saltwater aquarium, roughly the size of an average pool, filled with East Coast fish caught by the owner.

With AP.