A massive explosion that rocked the Lebanese capital Beirut yesterday, flattening much of the city's port and the surrounding areas, has killed at least 100 people and injured 4,000 so far and has caused $3bn-$5bn of damage, according to government officials.
The blast, which occurred at the key port in the north of the city at around 18:00 local time, followed a major fire at a warehouse, according to state-owned news agency NNA. The force of the explosion was felt as far away as the southeastern coast of Cyprus.
The precise cause of the explosion has not yet been officially determined, but Lebanon's interior minister Mohammed Fahmi said yesterday that a batch of fireworks had been stored near to a collection of "highly explosive materials" that had been confiscated "many years ago". The Lebanese presidency later tweeted a message from prime minister Hassan Diab, saying 2,750t of ammonium nitrate had been stored in a warehouse at the port for six years "without the right preventative measures". Diab has vowed that those found responsible will be held accountable. The director general of Lebanon's customs authority Badri Daher said the decision to store fireworks near explosive material would have been made by the port authorities.
Several engineering companies have started working with the Lebanese army to help clear debris from the area and to examine the full extent of the damage, according to the secretary-general of Lebanon's high relief commission major general Mohammed Khair. Rescue teams from a number of countries, including France, Greece, the UK and Russia, are being flown in to offer assistance in the form of personnel and equipment. And a number of regional neighbours have offered to send aid, including Kuwait, Qatar and Iran. Lebanon's health ministry and Red Cross have stressed the need for medical supplies, which they say have been "exhausted" by the country's ongoing battle with Covid-19.
The Lebanese presidency said yesterday that 100bn Lebanese pounds ($66mn) of emergency funds have been allocated to deal with the effects of the explosion, which reverberated through much of the densely populated city. The shockwaves from the blast led to windows and doors being blown out in houses and apartment blocks several kilometers away. Up to 300,000 people are now likely to be homeless, according to Beirut's governor Marwan Abboud.
The disaster is sure to have a massive and long-lasting impact on a country already struggling under the weight of years of economic decline and mismanagement that have left it among the most indebted nations in the world. Beirut port was one of Lebanon's main economic lifelines, with much of the country's grain imports from abroad delivered there. The port has also handled just over 50pc of the country's total crude, oil products and LPG imports so far this year, according to data from Vortexa. It accounted for 35pc of Lebanon's diesel/gasoil imports in the year to date, 67pc of gasoline deliveries and 68pc of fuel oil imports. The port at Tripoli, some 80km north of Beirut, will now serve as the company's main shipping hub, according to minister of public works Michel Najjar.
The disruption at Beirut port is likely to worsen the chronic fuel shortages that Lebanon has suffered since the end of the civil war in 1990. The country had been hoping to add Iraq to its list of fuel oil suppliers in exchange for agricultural products. Its main power provider EDL currently relies on fuel oil imports from Algeria and Kuwait. But in April, Lebanon accused Algeria's state-owned Sonatrach of delivering sub-standard fuel for EDL's Jiyeh and Zouk power plants. The country has since reached out to alternative suppliers for when its contracts with Kuwait and Algeria expire at the end of the year.
