Posted on 08/05/2020 11:45:13 AM PDT by Red Badger
Aug. 5 (UPI) -- Authorities in Beirut have increased the death count from the devastating explosions on Tuesday to at least 135, while one official said Wednesday it could cost Lebanon's capital as much as $5 billion to recover.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun called for an emergency Cabinet meeting and asked for a two-week state of emergency.
Beirut Gov. Marwan Abboud said about 300,000 were homeless after the blasts and estimated repair costs in the billions. Lebanese Red Cross workers searched abandoned neighborhoods on Wednesday, reporting more than 5,000 injured.
Abboud told local media that damages could range from $3 billion to $5 billion, or "maybe more." The death toll was in the dozens on Tuesday and had risen to triple digits on Wednesday, the Red Cross said.
Officials said they expect the toll to rise as they dig through the debris.
Authorities believe an initial explosion occurred at a warehouse near Beirut's port and ignited a fire, followed by multiple smaller explosions and, finally, a massive blast that caused the most damage. They said stored ammonium nitrate in the area was the likely source.
Seismologists said the biggest explosion was equivalent to a 3.3-magnitude earthquake.
Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab, declaring Wednesday a national day of mourning, has vowed to investigate the explosions and said anyone who may have facilitated them will be held accountable.
Diab said it has long been known that storing ammonium nitrate at the location was a hazard.
The accident could not have come at a worse time for Lebanon, which has been fighting to overcome a major economic crisis because of the devaluation of its currency. Officials said silos that held about 85% of Lebanon's grain were destroyed in the blasts.
Raoul Nehme, Lebanon's economy minister, said seven employees at the port's granaries are missing and that Lebanon now has less than a month's worth of grain reserves.
At least two Instagram accounts were established for those looking for loved ones in Beirut. One of the accounts also is posting lists of people admitted to various hospitals in the city, to help people find family members.
The World Health Organization said it's sending 23 tons of aid from its warehouse in Dubai, including medical trauma kits carrying syringes, bandages and gauze.
Germany has sent a team that includes dozens of search and rescue experts to aid with finding survivors and victims. France, Qatar, Iraq and Kuwait are said they are also sending supplies.
300,000????? Wow!
Some things never change. Those people are incapable of self-government.
I USED to be able to say that without cringing.
Work accident. Where’s OSHA.
I would bet real money you can add at least one zero to that death count.
Honestly, I doubt they’ll ever know how many were killed.
I love a happy ending
Just like 9-11, some bodies will never be found because there’s just nothing left to find...............
Beirut Lives Matter!
85% of their grain stores were lost?
Proves out the adage about not storing all your eggs in one basket.
The other Arab countries can now show their compassion as they run to aid Lebanon.
I’m not really buying the fertilizer excuse
Floating around now on the social media channels is a youtube capture of a bride, proud in her gown, grinning ear-to-ear.
Then the explosion occurs, cameraman runs away and pans away to escape.
No indication of the condition of the bride, but i’d imagine she is no longer.
The number is pulled out of the air. The bigger the number, the more dollars that can be begged for.
Some things never change. Those people are incapable of self-government.
thats a lot of fertilizer they cant make into bombs anymore.
new guy lit up a little too close to the pile.
I guess storing 2700 tons of ammonium nitrate in the middle of a major metro area isn’t such a great idea, eh?
Probably more than 200,000 of them were homeless BEFORE the explosion
How many of the 300,000 homeless will go to the US as “refugees?”
Christians welcome.
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