Beirut Explosion : All you need to know

Jaw dropping moment for world. An explosion in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, a country in western Asia, was Tuesday caught on camera and widely circulated on social media. The footage showed smoke billowing near the port area of the city, shortly before a powerful blast sent up a bigger cloud of smoke and a shockwave across the city, throwing the videographer off his feet.

The vibrations of the blast, which was initially misconstrued by some as detonation of some nuclear device, were even felt around 240 km away in Cyprus.At least 100 people were killed and nearly 4,000 injured in a massive explosion at Lebanon’s capital Beirut. The explosion, according to the Lebanon government, was of over 2700 tonnes of ammonium nitrate stored for six years in a warehouse in the port. Multiple reports suggest that a huge tremor-causing explosion was preceded by a fire, possibly of firecrackers.

Where did the ammonium nitrate come from?

In 2013 a Moldovan-flagged ship, the Rhosus, entered Beirut port after suffering technical problems during its journey from Georgia to Mozambique, according to Shiparrested.com, which deals with shipping-related legal cases.The Rhosus was inspected, banned from sailing onward and was shortly afterwards abandoned by its owners, sparking several legal claims.

Its cargo included the ammonium nitrate, which is used as a fertiliser and as an explosive.It was stored in a port warehouse for safety reasons, the report said, and it remained there for the next six years.

There are a lot of rules around storing ammonium nitrate, particularly around fire-proofing, because it is so highly explosive if it comes into contact with flames.

What is Ammonium Nitrate?

Ammonium nitrate is a chemical compound .It is a white crystalline solid consisting of ions of ammonium and nitrate. It is highly soluble in water and hygroscopic as a solid, although it does not form hydrates. It is predominantly used in agriculture as a high-nitrogen fertilizer. Global production was estimated at 21.6 million tonnes in 2017.

Pure ammonium nitrate is not an explosive on its own. It is classified as an oxidiser (Grade 5.1) under the United Nations classification of dangerous goods. If mixed with ingredients like fuel or some other contaminants, or because of some other external factors, it can be very explosive.

However, for combinations to explode, triggers like detonators are required. Many Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) used by terrorists around the world have ANFO as the main explosive, triggered by primary explosives like RDX or TNT. In the majority of terror attacks in India, including those in Pulwama, Varanasi, Malegaon, Pune, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Mumbai, ammonium nitrate has been used along with initiator explosives like RDX.

Impact of explosion :

In Beirut, the blast affected residents living as far as 10 kilometres away from the site. It even damaged the Baabda Palace, the residence of the Lebanese President. “Doors and windows in several of the palace’ wings were dislocated,” NNA reported. However, no one was injured.

Meanwhile, the explosion was felt nearly 250 kilometres away, in the neighbouring island of Cyprus, according to the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC). CNN reported that the blast created seismic waves equivalent of a magnitude 3.3 earthquake.

Other countries reactions towards blast:

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday expressed shock at the loss of lives in a massive explosion that rocked Beirut and said India’s thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved families and the injured.

US President Donald Trump in his briefings to the press on Tuesday called the incident to be an ‘attack’, something which has since been denied by US officials, as reported by the US media. The blast casualties have overwhelmed the health system of the country which has been in a serious financial crisis and because medical facilities have themselves been hit by the explosion.

UK’s Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab put out a tweet expressing solidarity with Lebanon. “My thoughts and prayers are with those affected by the devastating explosion in Beirut today. The UK stands in solidarity with the people of Lebanon and is ready to offer help and support including to those British nationals impacted,” he said.

French President Emmanuel Macron said he would send “rescue and aid” to Beruit, while Angela Merkel said Germany would offer Lebanon its help.

Why blast complicated condition in Beirut

Already, the country was suffering through Covid 19 pandamic. Economic condition of country was not stable, the blast created worst situation. There was huge loss of properties and many of people became homeless.

Lebanon’s economy minister said Wednesday that the nation has less than a month’s reserves of the grain but enough flour to avoid a crisis, the economy minister said on Wednesday. Raoul Nehme told Reuters that the country’s needed reserves for at least three months to ensure food security and was looking at other storage areas.

Latest information related to Beirut Lebanon:

1.There are numerous reports of children who have been separated from family members, some of whom are still missing;

2.At least 12 primary healthcare facilities, maternal, immunization and newborn centres in Beirut have been damaged, impacting services for nearly 120,000 people;

3.A children’s hospital in the Karantina area, which had a specialized unit treating critical newborns, was destroyed. One newborn died;

4.The remaining operational hospitals are over-stretched and have been depleted of critical medical supplies;

5.10 containers stocked by the Ministry of Public Health with personal protective equipment were destroyed;

6.Five out of seven UNICEF-supported vaccine cold rooms were destroyed in the blast, affecting critical vaccination programmes;

7.Many schools have reported damage in Beirut and the surrounding area, with assessments ongoing into the level of damage;

8. Many colonies and countries helped Beirut by giving away donations.

9.In the past 72 hours, 464 new cases of Covid-19 were registered.

………………………….. According to report !