A race against time. In search of survivors under the anguished gaze of families of victims, international rescuers are excavating the rubble of the port of Beirut this Friday, several of whose officials were arrested after the gigantic explosion which killed more than 150 people.
This explosion of unprecedented power, the most devastating experienced by Lebanon, fueled the anger of the population, which in October 2019 triggered a vast protest movement against the ruling class. The indignation is all the greater as the government has proved unable to justify the presence of ammonium nitrate at the port "without precautionary measures" by the Prime Minister's own admission.
More than 5,000 injured and many missing
Near the epicenter of the explosion, near the destroyed giant grain silos, French, Italian, German and other rescuers are coordinating their efforts. "I am waiting to learn that you were taken alive from the rubble, habibi (my darling)", wrote on Twitter Emilie Hasrouty, sister of a 38-year-old port official, missing in the silos. “I've knocked on every door to hear from you, and now that the wait is almost over, I'm paralyzed with fear,” she added.
الـ٦ مساءً في كاليفورنيا ،
الـ٤ فجراً في بيروت يا # غسان_حصروتي ،
أنتظر خبر انتشالك حيّاً فجراً في بيروت يا # غسان_حصروتي ، أنتظر خبر انتشالك حيلاً يا حجبيبي ، أيروت يا # غسان_حصروتي ، أنتظر خبر انتشالك كملالالولو حبيبي أأيروت.
لم أترك باباً لم أطرقه لأعرف ما حلّ بك ، والآن وقد اقتربت اللحظة المنتظرة أجدني مرعوبة حتى الشلل.
عدْ يا نور عيني بخير ، ناطرينك ♥ ️
On Friday morning, four bodies were found by rescuers in the port almost completely destroyed by the blast on Tuesday. It has also left more than 5,000 injured, tens of missing and hundreds of thousands homeless in nearby devastated neighborhoods, fueling the anger of the population against the political class, accused of incompetence and corruption.
"Everything has been pulverized"
International aid is flowing to Beirut, where French President Emmanuel Macron visited Thursday, calling for an international investigation into the explosion, which authorities said was triggered by a fire in a warehouse where 2,700 tonnes of nitrate had been stored for six years. 'ammonium, a highly flammable chemical.
Since the explosion on Tuesday evening, the families of the missing have rushed to the port to hear from their loved ones. The "particularity" of the Beirut drama? "The epicenter is a few meters from us, while in an earthquake, it is often several hundred meters underground," said Colonel Vincent Tissier, who heads a team of 55 members of the French civil security. “Things usually collapse in layers, in layers. Here, everything has been pulverized ”.
Anti-government protests
Russian rescuers, wading through corn, conduct their search as excavators remove crushed containers. Lebanese civil defense teams anxiously observe a sniffer dog circling a crater dug under a grounded crane. An agonizing calm reigns in the port, only broken by the sounds of machines clearing the immense expanse of rubble, endless mounds of twisted and disjointed iron.
Thursday evening, the police used tear gas in the city center to disperse dozens of demonstrators enraged by the incompetence and corruption of the authorities. Calls are circulating on social networks for an anti-government demonstration on Saturday, under the theme "Hang them".
Sixteen officials arrested
Lebanese authorities say the warehouse exploded after a fire. Port authorities, customs services and some security services were all aware that hazardous chemicals were stored there but they mutually blamed each other.
In addition to ammonium nitrate, the military prosecutor referred to the presence of "highly flammable materials and slow wicks" according to a statement. Sixteen port and customs officials were arrested and detained in connection with the investigation.
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Explosions in Beirut: "This catastrophe is symptomatic of a failed State where no one serves the general interest"
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Explosions in Beirut: 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate at the origin of the explosions in the port
- Explosion
- Beirut
- Lebanon
- World