Massive blast rips through Beirut, killing 50 and injuring thousands

By Samia Nakhoul and Yara Abi Nader

 

Smoke rises after an explosion in Beirut, Lebanon August 4, 2020, in this picture obtained from a social media video. Karim Sokhn/Instagram/Ksokhn + Thebikekitchenbeirut/via REUTERS

 

BEIRUT (Reuters) - A huge explosion in port warehouses near central Beirut killed more than 50 people, injured over 2,750 and sent shockwaves that shattered windows, smashed masonry and shook the ground across the Lebanese capital.

 

Location of the blast:

 

Officials expected the death toll to rise further after Tuesday's blast as emergency workers dug through rubble to rescue people and remove the dead. It was the most powerful explosion to hit Beirut in years.

 

Lebanon's interior minister said initial information indicated highly explosive material, seized years ago, that had been stored at the port had blown up. Israel, which has fought several wars with Lebanon, denied any role and offered help.

 

"What we are witnessing is a huge catastrophe," the head of Lebanon's Red Cross George Kettani told broadcaster Mayadeen. "There are victims and casualties everywhere."

 

Hours after the blast, which struck shortly after 6 p.m. (1500 GMT), a fire still blazed in the port district, casting an orange glow across the night sky as helicopters hovered and ambulance sirens sounded across the capital.

 

Smoke rises from the site of an explosion in Beirut, Lebanon August 4, 2020. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir

 

A security source said victims were taken for treatment outside the city because Beirut hospitals were packed with wounded. Red Cross ambulances from the north and south of the country and the eastern Bekaa valley were called in to help.

 

The blast was so big that some residents in the city, where memories of heavy shelling during the 1975 to 1990 civil war live on, thought an earthquake had struck. Dazed, weeping and wounded people walked through streets searching for relatives.

 

"I promise you that this catastrophe will not pass without accountability," Prime Minister Hassan Diab told the nation.

 

"Those responsible will pay the price," he said in his televised address, adding that details about the "dangerous warehouse" would be made public.

The interior minister told Al Jadeed TV that ammonium nitrate had been stored at the port since 2014.

 

The center of Lebanon's capital has been hit by an explosion and shockwave that has left the city in chaos. The cause is not immediately clear, but the health minister says there is a "very high number" of injuries. Emer McCarthy reports.

 

SMOKE AND FIREBALL

Footage of the explosion shared by residents on social media showed a column of smoke rising from the port followed by an enormous blast, sending a white cloud and fireball into the sky. Those filming the incident from high buildings 2 km (one mile) from the port were thrown backwards by the shock.

It was not immediately clear what caused the initial blaze on Tuesday that set off the blast.

 

Lebanon's health minister said more than 50 people had been killed and more than 2,750 injured. Lebanon's Red Cross said hundreds of people had been taken to hospitals.

 

Lebanese security and medical sources have told Reuters that at least 10 people are killed in the Beirut port explosion, although Lebanon's health minister has suggested the number may be much higher.

 

The governor of Beirut port told Sky News that a team of firefighters, who were battling the initial blaze, had "disappeared" after the explosion.

President Michel Aoun called for an emergency meeting of the Supreme Defence Council. Prime Minister Diab called for a day of mourning on Wednesday.

 

TANGLED WRECKAGE

The explosion occurred three days before a U.N.-backed court is due to deliver a verdict in the trial of four suspects from the Shi'ite group Hezbollah over a 2005 bombing which killed former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri and 21 others.

 

Hariri was killed by a huge truck bomb on the same waterfront, about 2 km (about one mile) from the port.

 

Internal Security Chief Abbas Ibrahim, touring the port area, said he would not pre-empt investigations.

 

Israeli officials said Israel had nothing to do with the blast and said their country was ready to give humanitarian and medical assistance to Lebanon. Shi'ite Muslim Iran, the main backer of Hezbollah, also offered support, as did Tehran's regional rival Saudi Arabia, a leading Sunni Muslim power.

 

A large explosion rocked Beirut on Tuesday, injuring many people as glass shattered and balconies collapsed from the impact, Reuters witnesses said.

 

Western countries including the United States, Britain and France also said they were ready to assist.

 

Images showed port buildings reduced to tangled masonry, devastating the main entry point to a country that relies on food imports to feed its population of more than 6 million.

 

It threatens a new humanitarian crisis in a nation that hosts hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees and which is already grappling with economic meltdown under one of the world's biggest debt burdens.

 

Residents said glass was broken in neighbourhoods on Beirut's Mediterranean coast to suburbs several kms (miles) away. In Cyprus, a Mediterranean island 110 miles (180 km) across the sea from Beirut, residents heard the blast. One resident in Nicosia said his house and window shutters shook.

 

(Reporting by Samia Nakhoul, Yara Abi Nader and Laila Bassam in Beirut; Additional reporting by Dubai, Beirut and Cairo bureaus; Writing by Dominic Evans and Ghaida Ghantous; Editing by Edmund Blair)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-08-05

 

- Whatever you're going through, the Samaritans are here for you

- Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

Jeez, the explosion was heard over 100 miles away. You have to think the death toll will be very high.  As if this nation has not had more than it's share of hard times. 

Horrific they think it was ammonia nytrate for fertilizer beeing stored that went up something similar happened in the states years ago when a whole ship blew up god that poor country has had more than its fair share of chaos imagine all the people watching in front of their windows just horrific 

just what our species needs right now. *sigh*

The Lebanese Minister of Health announced tonight  that 78 people were killed and about 4,000 were injured in the massive explosion that took place last night in central Beirut. Following the number of casualties and heavy destruction, countries around the world have offered humanitarian aid to Lebanon. Among the countries that offered aid are Israel and Iran .

"We are witnessing a tremendous catastrophe," said the head of the Lebanese Red Cross. "There are wounded and dead everywhere - on streets and in areas close to the explosion and far from it." It is estimated that the death toll will rise as emergency crews search for survivors in the rubble. The Lebanese health minister said authorities were having difficulty finding missing persons at night as there was no electricity.

 

According to some Lebanese television channels, the disaster began with an explosion at a warehouse in a port in Beirut, where fireworks were apparently stored. The fire that broke out in the same warehouse spread to nearby warehouses. In one of them were stored tons of ammonium nitrate, a substance used as fertilizer in the agriculture industry - and sometimes also for making improvised explosive devices.

According to a senior Lebanese security official, the warehouse contained about 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate. When the fire reached the warehouse, a huge explosion occurred, in which the fire crews who arrived at the scene after the first explosion were also injured. Beirut Governor Marwan Aboud said firefighters sent to the area "disappeared" after the second blast.

 

The imitating ammonium, which was confiscated from a ship that arrived at the port, was stored for a long time in the warehouse and was not transferred from it despite the fear that it was dangerous. In a statement, Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab said the materials had been in the same warehouse since 2014, and that those responsible for the default would pay a heavy price. Diab added that he will soon reveal more details, but at the moment he does not want to harm the investigation.

U.S. President Donald Trump, on the other hand, said "it looks like a horrific attack." , U.S. military officials. "It seems to be based on an explosion," Trump noted. "I met some of our generals and they think it's not just an explosion. It was an attack. It seems to be using some kind of bomb."

 

From Ynet.co.il

 

Israel offered the Lebanese government medical humanitarian aid, following the violent explosion that shook the city of Beirut , the Lebanese capital, last night (Tuesday) . The Israeli appeal was made under the direction of Defense Minister Bnei Gantz and Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi through UNIFIL, the United Nations and France, and included a proposal to send medical equipment and receive wounded people in Israel.

In addition, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the head of the National Security Council, Meir Ben Shabbat, to talk to UN envoy Nikolai Mladnov and find out what else Israel can do to help. Shortly after the announcement of the aid proposal, IDF Spokesman Brigadier General Hedi Zilberman wrote on Twitter that "this is the time to transcend any conflict." President Reuven (Ruby) Rivlin also wrote on Twitter, in Hebrew, Arabic and English, that "we "In the pain of the Lebanese people at the time of its disaster, they are sending out a helping hand."

 

From Ynet.co.il

A similar explosion of ammonium nitrate (fertilizer) occurred in Texas City, Texas on April 16, 1947 killing about 500 people and destroying much of the city.  2,200 tons of ammonium nitrate was stored in 2 ships at harbor. One caught fire eventually detonating the ammonium nitrate in both. One ship was also carrying 1,800 tons of sulfur, the other was carrying arms and ammunition. A two ton anchor was 'thrown' 1.6 miles.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_City_disaster

 

In Beirut, the ammonium nitrate was similarly detonated by a fire from an explosion in another warehouse containing fireworks.  It's unlikely anyone could predict the fire from the first explosion would detonate the ammonium nitrate.

 

Very sad. We can all watch various news sources ( I highly recommend NOT CNN ) over the next few hours and see what really happened. No need for other info. 

10 minutes ago, rabas said:

A similar explosion of ammonium nitrate (fertilizer) occurred in Texas City, Texas on April 16, 1947 killing about 500 people and destroying much of the city.  2,200 tons of ammonium nitrate was stored in 2 ships at harbor. One caught fire eventually detonating the ammonium nitrate in both. One ship was also carrying 1,800 tons of sulfur, the other was carrying arms and ammunition. A two ton anchor was 'thrown' 1.6 miles.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_City_disaster

 

In Beirut, the ammonium nitrate was similarly detonated by a fire from an explosion in another warehouse containing fireworks.  It's unlikely anyone could predict the fire from the first explosion would detonate the ammonium nitrate.

 

It  should be obvious that quantities of that substance should not be stored inside city limits for that length of time. 

There is an alternative possibility. If it was terrorism, the perpetrators could have set off the first smaller explosion to attract as many people as possible, then set off the massive ammonium nitrate to kill and maim as many as possible. Al-Qaeda was famous for two stage explosions.

 

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Lebanon's interior minister said initial information indicated highly explosive material, seized years ago, that had been stored at the port had blown up.

Whoever thought it was a good idea to store that much highly explosive material in a built up area should be arrested and charged with manslaughter.

1 hour ago, rabas said:

There is an alternative possibility. If it was terrorism, the perpetrators could have set off the first smaller explosion to attract as many people as possible, then set off the massive ammonium nitrate to kill and maim as many as possible. Al-Qaeda was famous for two stage explosions.

It wasn't an initial explosion. It was a fire followed by an explosion. That is my opinion after seeing the VDO that was on Al Jazeera.

IMO for what it's worth it was the inevitable result of storing tons of highly explosive material in a warehouse for years.

 

I read a previous post stating there was an explosion of fireworks that caused the fire. While that may be correct, IMO the subsequent fire blew up the nitrate, and not a terrorist bomb, though time will tell if I'm correct or not.

If it were a terrorist attack I'd expect it would have been on the news by now.

Edited August 5, 20205 yr by thaibeachlovers

1 hour ago, rabas said:

It's unlikely anyone could predict the fire from the first explosion would detonate the ammonium nitrate.

They COULD predict that a fire in the area beside the ammonium nitrate would cause an explosion and act accordingly. Storing it in a warehouse in a built up area was, IMO, a criminal act in the first place as they know what happens if a fire occurs near it.

1 hour ago, rabas said:

There is an alternative possibility. If it was terrorism, the perpetrators could have set off the first smaller explosion to attract as many people as possible, then set off the massive ammonium nitrate to kill and maim as many as possible. Al-Qaeda was famous for two stage explosions.

Always a possibility, looking at Peterw42 post number 13 there was definitely a smaller fire or explosion before the main one.

Condolences to the people of Lebanon, among whom I have several friends who I have found to be a gentle peace loving group.

It's looking like a similar accident that happened just a few years ago in China. Same port warehouse storage and 'fertilizer' chemical (Ammonium Nitrate). That blast (or series of blasts) in the Port of Tianjin registered as 'earthquakes' as the explosion was so massive.

The tragedy in China killed over 170 people.

You would think that warehousing procedures worldwide would have changed after Tianjin..

Quote

On August 12, 2015, a series of explosions killed 173 people, according to official reports, and injured hundreds of others at a container storage station at the Port of Tianjin.^[2] The first two explosions occurred within 30 seconds of each other at the facility, which is located in the Binhai New Area of Tianjin, China.^[3][4] The second explosion was far larger and involved the detonation of about 800 tonnes of ammonium nitrate (336 tons TNT equivalent).^[5] Fires caused by the initial explosions continued to burn uncontrolled throughout the weekend, resulting in eight additional explosions on 15 August. Of the 173 fatalities, 104 were firefighters.

The cause of the explosions was not immediately known,^[4] but an investigation concluded in February 2016 that an overheated container of dry nitrocellulose was the cause of the initial explosion.^[6] The official casualty report was 173 deaths, 8 missing, and 798 non-fatal injuries.^[7]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Tianjin_explosions

Edited August 5, 20205 yr by huangnon

Some news from Beirut said it was a cargo ship, loaded with fireworks that caught fire at the port during unloading, but newer reports say that a pyrotechnics warehouse at the port had fire gone out of control.

 

Before:

After:

 

Some more links:

5 minutes ago, tomazbodner said:

 

Before:

After:

Absolute devastation shown in the after photo.

Thank you for sharing the before and after. They really bring home how horrific that explosion was.

I just read that the white building right next to the blast is actually country's wheat reserve storage. Let's also not forget that Lebanon is bankrupt, so life was already hard as it was, and wiping out significant part of their food reserves could not come at a worse time.

There are multiple videos of the  explosion(s). There is also the strong likelihood that munitions were also involved. Keep in mind that there is a state within a state, with Hizbollah  operating  separate from  Lebanon. Considering all the potential  explosive and flammable products at the location it is not unreasonable to have one explosion set off other explosions and fires.

 

Watching the explosion  wave, there will be thousands of people with ruptured eardrums and a profound loss of hearing. It was a potent blast.

 

3 hours ago, alex8912 said:

Very sad. We can all watch various news sources ( I highly recommend NOT CNN ) over the next few hours and see what really happened. No need for other info. 

What a stupid statement. CNN's newsroom was blasted  out and Ben Wiedermann was reporting from their former studio in the midst of the shattered glass and window frames lying about. It provided an excellent perspective of the extent of the damage. CNN  only reported on the actual known facts.  There was no speculation or  false claims.  CBS has done the same. BBC International has the same neutral position as CNN.

 

1 hour ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Whoever thought it was a good idea to store that much highly explosive material in a built up area should be arrested and charged with manslaughter.

it is a large port. The port is surrounded by an industrial estate, and then offices and residential. This is common for ports in large cities.  The  ammonium nitrate came from a ship's cargo hold. If you are surprised by this amount of product, then you will not want to go to Mazingarbe France where much of the western EU's ammonium nitrate supply is manufactured. Ports handle very dangerous commodities daily. You certainly will want to steer clear of  the Bangkok port.

 

 

1 hour ago, huangnon said:

It's looking like a similar accident that happened just a few years ago in China. Same port warehouse storage and 'fertilizer' chemical (Ammonium Nitrate). That blast (or series of blasts) in the Port of Tianjin registered as 'earthquakes' as the explosion was so massive.

The tragedy in China killed over 170 people.

You would think that warehousing procedures worldwide would have changed after Tianjin..

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Tianjin_explosions

 

Do you really believe that a port in  lebanon would put safety first?

 

 

 

Edited August 5, 20205 yr by geriatrickid

Thanks to members posting wiki's to the Texas City and Tianjin blasts. Ammonium nitrate still appears to be regarded as a benign substance and allowed to be stored in vast quantities at single locations.

Off topic, troll and wild speculative posts have been removed

when we were young they used to use this as a weed killer ,we used to mix it with sugar ,put it into a metal tube and close both ends in a vice ,then in a hole we had made would put jetex fuse ,light it and throw them out in the country they went off like a grenade ,can you imagine doing that these days

ps i wont go into things we blew up with them ,and how one friend got hit by a fragment .????

17 minutes ago, bert bloggs said:

when we were young they used to use this as a weed killer ,we used to mix it with sugar ,put it into a metal tube and close both ends in a vice ,then in a hole we had made would put jetex fuse ,light it and throw them out in the country they went off like a grenade ,can you imagine doing that these days

ps i wont go into things we blew up with them ,and how one friend got hit by a fragment .????

Still happening, see below a video of regulated shooting, also unregulated happening everywhere.

 

2 hours ago, stevenl said:

Still happening, see below a video of regulated shooting, also unregulated happening everywhere.

 

 getting flashbacks of when we had 7 chickens (unintentionally' cannon-shot out the ass of a massive pig-on-spit; that got too hot! 

Incredible footage you really see the power of the blast

 

 

 

7 hours ago, rabas said:

There is an alternative possibility. If it was terrorism, the perpetrators could have set off the first smaller explosion to attract as many people as possible, then set off the massive ammonium nitrate to kill and maim as many as possible. Al-Qaeda was famous for two stage explosions.

...and if my granny had wheels, she would be a bus!

Cam't we just wait and see, what the investigators come up with?

Do we have to make half- arsed predictions and gossip?

Yes...that includes you, Donald Trump!

 

When I was in the army I saw a display of artillery firing live rounds and an F-111 dropping bombs which all combined was not even a spot on that Beirut explosion.  

 

But I don't get how it went bang almost like a nuclear explosion.  Some friend's and I ran a number of experiments with ammonium nitrate fertiliser, a long time ago, and we never got an explosion of any kind like this one....in fact none!  You need a super good detonator to initiate an explosion.  There must have been diesel fuel or avturb in there as well.

certainly a bit suss; in just haw many myriad of cameras were pointing at the zone

- to make sure of it being captured from all angles  

 

 A scaled down simulation of an urban nuclear test

11 minutes ago, tifino said:

certainly a bit suss; in just haw many myriad of cameras were pointing at the zone

- to make sure of it being captured from all angles  

 

 A scaled down simulation of an urban nuclear test

The cameras where pointed at the big fire and the pillar of smoke rising from it, BEFORE the explosion!

And then it happened!

Nothing "suss" about that!

At all!