On 4th August, just after 6pm local time a fire erupted at the roof of a warehouse in central Beirut. After a few dozen bags caught alight there were several explosions as fireworks started to set off. Locals looked up as the white smoke caused by the fireworks attracted attention. Then shortly after, the ammonium nitrate which was stored with the now alight fireworks, exploded. The explosion created a pile of red and black smoke which was followed by an atomic bomb like mushroom cloud. All of this happened within a matter of seconds and before people could react a supersonic shockwave was sent across the area. The powerful blast created a crater of approximately 460 feet wide and even destroyed buildings about 5 miles away. It has been reported that the blast was even heard as far as Cyprus. Sehaj Dhillon reports.
The shocking blast in Beirut forced thousands of people to protest in the street, the government in turmoil and over 200 people dead. While thousands were injured even more were displaced from their home.
As frustrations grew up to 10,000 gathered to protest last week. They marched near Martyr’s Square, which happened to be one of the areas devastated most. A fire broke out at the square while other protestors broke into the foreign ministry which burnt a portrait of Lebanon President, Michel Aoun.
As frustration and anger grew amongst the protestors there was huge clashes with police while exchanges of rocks and rubber bullets being fired as been confirmed by Reuters
Chants echoed throughout a broken Beirut. Protesters demanded the fall of the regime while many screamed “You have no conscience; you have no morality. Go home! Leave! Resign, enough is enough. “Leave, you are all killers”.
What followed was the Lebanese government resigned on the 10th August. President Aoun accepted prime minister Hassan Diab’s resignation who made an announcement to the public who said that he believed the corruption is rooted in every part of the state. He said: “A political class is using all their dirty tricks to prevent real change. The more we tried to get to them, the bigger the walls became.”
Following that, a further six MPs stepped down, leaving Aoun’s cabinet in turmoil. Even with the resignations Aoun insisted that the cabinet operates in a caretaker role while a new cabinet is formed. The explosion has affected politicians and made them realise the severity of mistakes.
The reason the blast was as detrimental was due to the poor storage of the explosive compound Ammonium nitrate. Ammonium nitrate which can be used as fertiliser was stored at a warehouse at the port without any safety measures. 2,750 tonnes of the explosive compound lay next to bags of fireworks for six years. Warnings about the explosion were brought up but never investigated.
Former port worker, Yusuf Shehadi told The Guardian that he was instructed by the Lebanese military to place the chemicals in the warehouse despite the warnings. He said: “We complained a lot about this over the years”. Every other week customs workers and state security officers warned how dangerous it was, but the army told them they had no other place to keep them.
Next to the chemicals Shehadi said there were “30 to 40 nylon bags of fireworks inside warehouse 12”. He complained that it wasn’t safe, and the warehouse was also humid, “this was a disaster waiting to happen” he said. If stored properly ammonium nitrate is safe but it can decay after a long time. It could also be due to the humidity the chemical absorbed moisture.
It’s clear that this situation was mishandled from several factions in Lebanon. Analysis of public records and documents showed that senior Lebanese officials knew that ammonium nitrate was stored in hanger 12 at the port since 2013. Unfortunately, for the locals they’re left with the damage and loss while volunteers tried to clean it up.
International donors are doing their best to help the people of Beirut. Officials estimate that the explosion caused around £11.5 billion of damage. Several government and countries have offered various aid .The UK promised £20 million, the US $15 million while France will offer reconstruction material, medical and food aid.
