Huge Explosion in Beirut

[Tracked]

Death toll in Lebanese capital rises to 135 as about 5,000 people are wounded – as it happened

Lebanese TV reports latest toll as government declares two-week state of emergency in Beirut after half the city damaged in blast

www.theguardian.com

A massive explosion has rocked central Beirut that shattered windows, knocked down doors and shook buildings several hundred feet away.

The source of the blast which appeared to occur around the Lebanese capital’s port is currently unclear. Cars were left strewn across the surrounding highway. Eyewitnesses told LBC television that at least dozens were hurt and hospitals were full of injured people.

Another driving past the port said he first saw a fire from his window and then felt an enormous explosion that lifted the highway.

Many people were feared to be trapped inside the rubble immediately surrounding the explosion.

Lebanon’s health minister told journalists a ship carrying fireworks had blown up in the port, though the size of the blast heard across the country raised suspicions it might have resulted from a rocket strike or detonation of explosives - deliberate or otherwise. He said at least dozens were wounded but did not give further details of casualties.

Seen a few of the videos, does look like some fireworks are going off near the bottom of the first from the first blast.

 

[Cowley]

That looks absolutely devastating.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Lead story on tonight's 6.00 p.m. BBC1 news bulletin.

 

[LOL The Irony]

Video of the explosion

https://twitter.com/FadyRoumieh/status/1290672517733064705?s=20

 

[scotrail158713]

Devastating news indeed

Beirut blast: Dozens dead and thousands injured, health minister says

The explosion has caused widespread damage, with hospitals struggling to treat all the casualties.

www.bbc.co.uk

A large blast in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, has killed at least 27 people and injured more than 2,500 others, the health minister says.
It is not yet clear what caused the explosion in the port region. Videos posted online showed a column of smoke followed by a large mushroom cloud.
Hospitals are said to be overwhelmed and many buildings have been destroyed.
Lebanon's internal security chief said the blast happened in an area housing highly explosive materials.
A BBC journalist at the scene reported dead bodies and severe damage, enough to put the port out of action.
The explosion comes at a sensitive time for Lebanon, with an economic crisis reigniting old divisions. Tensions are also high ahead of Friday's verdict in a trial over the killing of ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005.
Some reports suggest the explosion may have been an accident. Lebanon's National News Agency reported a fire breaking out at what it called an explosives depot at the port before the explosion.
Local media showed people trapped beneath rubble. A witness described the first explosion as deafening, and video footage showed wrecked cars and blast-damaged buildings.
President Michel Aoun called for an emergency meeting of the Supreme Defence Council, the presidency said on Twitter. Wednesday has been declared a day of mourning, the prime minister said.
UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the government was "ready to offer help and support" while French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said France was also ready to offer assistance.

 

[Iskra]

Video of the explosion

https://twitter.com/FadyRoumieh/status/1290672517733064705?s=20

That’s more than fireworks

 

[Cowley]

Devastating news indeed

Beirut blast: Dozens dead and thousands injured, health minister says

The explosion has caused widespread damage, with hospitals struggling to treat all the casualties.

www.bbc.co.uk

When you see the power of that shockwave even from half a mile away it’s hard to imagine anyone around the quayside surviving it.
Although then again it’s amazing what the human body can survive sometimes.

 

[Bayum]

A slightly different view:
https://twitter.com/i/status/1290678797742661633
I don't seem to be able to edit this as a media link :/

 

[LOL The Irony]

That’s more than fireworks

More recent reports say a warehouse containing nitrate was nearby and it ignited.

 

[Trackman]

That’s more than fireworks

Ammonium Nitrate apparently.

 

[Iskra]

Nitrates go in bombs, so that explains it.

Feel for everyone who’s been caught up in that.

 

[philjo]

BBC just reported that 2750 tonnes of Ammonium nitrate had been stored for 6 years.

 

[Jamesrob637]

BBC just reported that 2750 tonnes of Ammonium nitrate had been stored for 6 years.

I heard longer than 6 years. But maybe that was an exaggeration.

 

[MarkyT]

Reminds me of warehouse explosions at the Chinese port of Tianjin in 2015. The largest blast there was from 800t of stored ammonium nitrate rather than the enormous 2750t claimed here. In China there was also much secondary contamination from other materials stored nearby.

 

[90019]

I heard longer than 6 years. But maybe that was an exaggeration.

It's been there since 2013.

It was being transported aboard the MV Rhosus, en route to Mozambique but the ship encountered mechanical problems so entered the port of Beirut for repairs. After being inspected by port authorities it was forbidden from sailing.
The owners abandoned the ship and couldn't be contacted or traced. Because it was too dangerous to leave the cargo on board it was transferred to a warehouse next to the port's grain silos, where it has been sitting unclaimed ever since. Nobody wanted it or wanted to deal with it.


This is how it was stored:

 

[thejuggler]

I've been reading comments from lots of self righteous people asking "how such a dangerous amount of explosive material could be stored in a built up area."

I assume they have no idea just how many people in the UK live next to installations which if there was a serious incident and explosion could kill hundreds.

 

[Mitchell Hurd]

It's been there since 2013.

It was being transported aboard the MV Rhosus, en route to Mozambique but the ship encountered mechanical problems so entered the port of Beirut for repairs. After being inspected by port authorities it was forbidden from sailing.
The owners abandoned the ship and couldn't be contacted or traced. Because it was too dangerous to leave the cargo on board it was transferred to a warehouse next to the port's grain silos, where it has been sitting unclaimed ever since. Nobody wanted it or wanted to deal with it.


This is how it was stored:

This is how it was stored??? But then how has it exploded after all this time?

 

[philjo]

There was a fire close by in the port area. The heat from the fire is likely to have triggered the explosion. The melting point is 169.6 degrees C.

 

[90019]

This is how it was stored??? But then how has it exploded after all this time?

The initial fire was in either a nearby warehouse or possibly a different part of the same warehouse which had alledgedy been storing fireworks - which would explain the white flashes visible in the plume of grey smoke.
Presumably it was the heat from that fire which managed to trigger the explosion of the ammonium nitrate.

 

[birchesgreen]

I've been reading comments from lots of self righteous people asking "how such a dangerous amount of explosive material could be stored in a built up area."

I assume they have no idea just how many people in the UK live next to installations which if there was a serious incident and explosion could kill hundreds.

Yes indeed there is a large oil depot literally 10 minutes walk from where i live in North Brum, surrounded by housing estates of course!

 

[eMeS]

Yes indeed there is a large oil depot literally 10 minutes walk from where i live in North Brum, surrounded by housing estates of course!

At least when the Hemel Hempstead oil tanks burnt, they were away from housing.

 

[Shimbleshanks]

I've been reading comments from lots of self righteous people asking "how such a dangerous amount of explosive material could be stored in a built up area."

I assume they have no idea just how many people in the UK live next to installations which if there was a serious incident and explosion could kill hundreds.

Ports in Europe have tended to move their operational areas away from built up areas as ships have got bigger and road congestion more of an issue. Think of London, Bristol, Immingham, Felixstowe, Rotterdam etc. But there are still a few examples of ports that are still in the middle of their respective urban areas - Dublin, Cork (though most commercial operations here are due to be shifted away from the city) come to mind. In less developed parts of the world this trend is less apparent and operational port areas can often be hemmed in by residential areas as was the case in Beirut, tragically.

 

[bearhugger]

I've been reading comments from lots of self righteous people asking "how such a dangerous amount of explosive material could be stored in a built up area."

I assume they have no idea just how many people in the UK live next to installations which if there was a serious incident and explosion could kill hundreds.

Indeed. The wider area in which I live (Teesside) has several chemical plants that once made up ICI and a nuclear power plant this side of Hartlepool. There's even a small chemical plant right next to the railway line as you come from Saltburn / Nunthorpe lines into Middlesbrough station. Goodness knows where there are underground pipes & storage areas that are linked to the old docks and what's in them. I've long considered the possibility that if the right places were bombed / hit then the possible chain reactions could be horrendous round here.

 

[Crossover]

I've been reading comments from lots of self righteous people asking "how such a dangerous amount of explosive material could be stored in a built up area."

I assume they have no idea just how many people in the UK live next to installations which if there was a serious incident and explosion could kill hundreds.

Indeed. Plenty of COMAH tier sites in and around housing areas

 

[Trackman]

There was a fire close by in the port area. The heat from the fire is likely to have triggered the explosion. The melting point is 169.6 degrees C.

I've just been reading about it, it doesn't need an igniter.
This is the same stuff they used primarily in the 1996 Manchester bomb because it's cheap and easy to get hold of (back then it was)

 

[Horizon22]

I've been reading comments from lots of self righteous people asking "how such a dangerous amount of explosive material could be stored in a built up area."

I assume they have no idea just how many people in the UK live next to installations which if there was a serious incident and explosion could kill hundreds.

Which is why Health & Safety is not to be taken lightly or forgotten. Literally the differnece between life & death sometimes.

 

[Crossover]

Which is why Health & Safety is not to be taken lightly or forgotten. Literally the differnece between life & death sometimes.

A colleague made a very good point earlier in that things are safe as long as substances are treated with respect. The problem comes when there is a loss of respect and the result can, in the wrong circumstances, bite you in the proverbial backside

 

[GRALISTAIR]

So sad - if only that ammonium nitrate had been spread on the land surrounding the city it would have fertilized the soil.

 

[christopher]

So sad - if only that ammonium nitrate had been spread on the land surrounding the city it would have fertilized the soil.

Well it is kind of spread now...

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Well it is kind of spread now...

Well no - it will now be steam, nitrogen gas and NO2 which will lead to acid rain and respiratory diseases.