Video: Giant rubber duck explodes in Taiwan

New Year's Eve revellers were set to gather near the port to see the duck

The moment the giant rubber duck exploded in Keelung

A giant rubber duck that has travelled across the world has unexpectedly exploded in Taiwan.

The incident happened in the northern port city of Keelung, just hours before a crowd of people were gathering to celebrate the New Year.

It is thought that bad weather caused the duck to burst. Several days of rain followed by high temperatures and sunshine led to a build-up of pressure inside the sculpture before it exploded.

People were left shocked by the burst sculpture while the rubber duck's creator Florentijn Hofman described the explosion as "incredible".

A replacement duck is being brought in from Vietnam and will be on display in Keelung from Saturday for tourists who came specifically to see the sculpture.

An investigation will be launched into the incident and an organiser said: "We want to apologise to the fans of the yellow rubber duck," going on to say "We will carefully examine the duck to determine the cause."

This is not the first time a giant rubber duck has exploded in Taiwan, only last month another sculpture deflated following an earthquake in Taoyuan.

The rubber duck sculptures have been displayed all across the world and visited 13 cities in nine countries since 2007.