Massive Beirut blast kills more than 70, injures thousands

[ripcord]

Source: KPLC 7

A massive explosion rocked Beirut on Tuesday, flattening much of the city's port, damaging buildings across the capital and sending a giant mushroom cloud into the sky. More than 70 people were killed and 3,000 injured, with bodies buried in the rubble, officials said.

It was not clear what caused the blast, which struck with the force of a 3.5 magnitude earthquake, according to Germany’s geosciences center GFZ, and was heard and felt as far away as Cyprus more than 200 kilometers (180 miles) across the Mediterranean. Lebanon’s interior minister said it appeared that a large cache of ammonium nitrate in the port had detonated.

For blocks around the port, bloodied residents staggered through streets lined with overturned cars and littered with rubble from shattered buildings. Windows and doors were blown out kilometers (miles) away, including at the city's only international airport. Army helicopters helped battle fires raging at the port.

Interior Minister Mohammed Fahmi told a local TV station that it appeared the blast was caused by the detonation of more than 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate that had been stored in a warehouse at the dock ever since it was confiscated from a cargo ship in 2014. Witnesses reported seeing an orange cloud like that which appears when toxic nitrogen dioxide gas is released after an explosion involving nitrates.



Read more: https://www.kplctv.com/2020/08/04/massive-explosion-shakes-lebanons-capital-beirut/?fbclid=IwAR0spnx5b9RWMylqMWp8EDDjufTLyrT3CKNOSFsIj7ZM6zp5M8Q1sXO6Aro

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That blast was incredible, I can't imagine how many people were killed or injured in something like that.

[Polybius]

1. It was equivalent to a magnitude 3.3 earthquake

That's an awful lot of fireworks.

https://www.cnn.com/middleeast/live-news/lebanon-beirut-explosion-live-updates-dle-intl/h_da222628bccbcd0736247682b65a8675

[rustysgurl]

2. Ammonium Nitrate

I read news reports that said there were thousands of tons of ammonium nitrate that had been stored in the building for years. Haven't been able to confirm that as of yet.

[BigmanPigman]

3. Yup, same stuff used to blow up Oklahoma City Building

by terrorists McVeigh and Nichols. They used 100 lbs of of ammonium nitrate fertilizer. The warehouse had tons of the same stuff.

[machI]

8. Official story the material was Ammonium Nitrate seized from a sinking ship in 2013

Conspiracy theory story the material was chemicals used to make rocket fuel for Hezbollah missiles.

[Starfury]

4. Holy...!

From the OP's link...

Link to tweet

I have no words. If "only" 70 died, that'll be a miracle...

[Warpy]

5. It's especially bad because of decades of government mismanagement

and probably outright theft have left the country's finances in a shambles. Currency there has lost 80% of its value. The main hospital, American University Hospital, let hundreds of nurses go in the past few weeks because there was no money to pay them., There is no money to house people whose homes are wrecked, no money to repair homes, no money for anything.

The fact that the government had seized the ammonium nitrate and simply sat on it rather than selling it offshore for some hard currency is going to be a huge scandal now, and it should be.

I'd be a little leery of donating directly to Red Crescent or Lebanon Red Cross, the country is such a mess that the chance of ripoffs is a factor. Doctors Without Borders will be there, probably tomorrow. Oxfam will help with temporary housing. Other good agencies are out there.

Disasters like this are always horrific, but this has got to be the worst time and the worst place, ever.

[dalton99a]

6. Pics:

[w0nderer]

7. K & R N/T

[Baclava]

9. 100 dead, thousands injured, death toll expected to rise, 300,000 left homeless