Oceana was supposed to open in the summer last year.
But a few months before the opening, flames suddenly erupted from one of the water slides. The fire spread quickly and dark smoke spread over Gothenburg.
A 51-year-old man, who worked as a construction manager, died in the fire.
The State Accident Investigation Commission confirms in its final report that it started when plastic pipes under one of the water slides were to be assembled using so-called electrical muff welding.
According to the investigation, the pipes were incorrectly mounted, which caused them to overheat during welding and catch fire.
Previous fire
During the investigation, traces of a previous, similar fire were also found.
We have tried to investigate the other assemblies that we could find, much has been destroyed, says the investigation's chairman Kristina Börjevik Kovaniemi.
But in a couple of these assemblies, we have seen deficiencies and in one of them, signs of a fire that likely self-extinguished.
The assemblers had, according to the investigation, limited experience of electrical muff welding. It is also impossible to rule out that they worked under time pressure.
The Accident Investigation Commission is now pointing out a number of deficiencies in the work environment.
There have been deficiencies in knowledge of the risks of the work, implementation, and planning, says investigation leader Håkan Josefsson.
There have also been other deficiencies. It indicates that the systematic work environment has not functioned fully.
"Must learn"
Liseberg is the client for Oceana, while NCC was the general contractor and the water slides were delivered by Canadian Whitewater West.
"It's good that the State Accident Investigation Commission has now established that the fire started when a water attraction supplier, who was not working on behalf of NCC, performed a work task incorrectly", says Niklas Sparw, business area manager for NCC Building Sweden, in a comment.
The Accident Investigation Commission believes, however, that all parties, including NCC, need to strengthen their routines.
According to Liseberg, many of the recommendations have already been implemented.
"We must all learn from the fire. Otherwise, it becomes meaningless. That's the purpose of the report, to make us all – clients, contractors, and suppliers – better and ensure that something like this doesn't happen again", says CEO Andreas Andersen in a press release.
Liseberg's new water world Oceana, which was supposed to open around the summer of 2024, is located just south of the amusement park.
Large parts of the water world were destroyed in a fire that started on February 12 last year. A 51-year-old man, a construction manager on site, was found dead after the fire, while about 15 people needed hospital care for minor injuries.
The adventure pool had, according to Liseberg, cost around 1.2 billion kronor to build.
The police investigation into the fire is still ongoing, and it is also being investigated by the Work Environment Authority.
Earlier this year, it was announced that the construction company NCC will rebuild Oceana again. The order is estimated to be worth around 600 million kronor.
Oceana is scheduled to be completed around the turn of the year 2026-2027.
