Beirut Blast Victims Still Recovering From the Day Their City Exploded

On August 3, 2020, Ahmed returned from school and played with his dad. After his afternoon siesta, he ate dinner and slept again to prepare for the next day. Little did he know that this would be the last day of his life.

On August 4, 2020, an explosion of unprecedented magnitude rocked Beirut and the whole city of Lebanon. The blast was so fierce that it demolished the houses of more than 300,000 people. People felt the waves of this blast as far as the US, registering a 3.3 on the seismic scale, which is on par with an artificial nuclear test.

But how did the blast become so fierce? Was it a terrorist attack? Why did the government resign? And the most crucial question that everyone seems to be asking, without much success, is what caused the Beirut explosion?

How The Beirut Blast Started

The main ingredient behind the explosion was Ammonium Nitrate, covered generously with a topping of corruption at the port. The officials had previously confiscated the massive cargo of Ammonium Nitrate from the Rhosus, the Moldovan-flagged ship that entered its port in November 2013.

The whole cargo was offloaded at hangar 12 in Beirut’s port on October 13 and 14, 2014. The port officials did have a clue about what this cargo could do and still did nothing. Due to their negligence, the time bomb kept on ticking inside the hugely populous city.

We do not know whether the Ammonium Nitrate was meant for Lebanon or Mozambique. This confusion is partly due to the officers handling the apprehension of the cargo of Rhosus and their storage method.

D-Day of The Beirut Blast

Although the cargo of Rhosus was unloaded under mysterious circumstances, the knowledge of storing fireworks alongside the shipment in a poorly maintained warehouse did not remain hidden.

Many previously written letters cited the need to correctly store the cargo, which could lead to a considerable loss of life and property if neglected.

The chemical did not ignite by itself as it needed a catalyst. But the catalyst still evades the grasp of the authorities. Although there are many theories, few have gained traction. One states that a welding work caused the fire in the warehouse, which later caused the tremendous blast. Another theory states that the explosion was intentional, as the invested parties wanted to hide that some of the Ammonium Nitrate had been used to further their political goals. Whatever the catalyst, one thing is for sure, the government knew about the cargo and the threat it posed and still did nothing to deal with it.

The fire in the warehouse ignited the ammonium nitrate, which wiped out the port and half the city. Many Beirut Blast Victims lost their lives and many more were injured. The Lebanese currency had been in a downward spiral (against the dollar) since the past year. The explosion put the country in an even tighter spot.

Aftermath of the Explosion

The explosion killed 218 people (including people from Lebanon, Bangladesh, and the US). More than 7000 people were injured. In addition, around 77000 houses were destroyed, which left more than 300000 Beirut blast victims without a roof over their heads. In short, the explosion cost the country about $4.5 billion in damages.

But that is not all. More capital was lost on the treatment and hospitalization of the various victims. Furthermore, the government was forced to acknowledge their mistake and had to resign under public uproar. This caused the government of the country to dissolve in a single day.

In addition to this, the country had been dealing with Covid-19. The blast made things even worse. The number of people who could not get to a hospital due to the Beirut blast victims cannot even be documented. The pressure on the health service sector increased even more, with the whole system collapsing on itself and barely functioning properly.

Beirut Blast Victims After One Year.

Image Source: https://www.pexels.com/photo/city-street-graffiti-building-6462796/

While the government stressed that their main priority is rebuilding the port and the city, most of these areas are still under construction or in ruins. Many imminent reporters have covered the city’s current state, which hasn’t recovered from the blast yet.

An even steeper decline in currency followed the blast, which led to inflated prices of even the most basic commodities. Also, the severely damaged infrastructure has led to extended power outages and intermittent rebuilding.

Medicine, fuel, and milk were in short supply, and the affluent had already fled the country. Those remaining aren’t financially capable of leaving the country or even rebuilding their lives. This has further contributed to the stalled reconstruction efforts.

But the blast isn’t the only incident that led to such a horrendous outcome. It was the trigger for years of unrelenting monopoly, corruption, and disregard for the general populace. The corrupt politicians led to the accumulation of the cargo. For personal gains, the officials overlooked the safety of the public. The actual blame lies with the officials who were destroying the country from within. The blast was just the trigger that released the mass of public emotions and made them take responsibility for their actions.

The road to rebuilding the city is a long and arduous journey. The damage was extensive, so much so that many niches still feel the recoil from the blast. But humans are hardy creatures by nature. But Rome wasn’t built in a day, and though the houses were damaged, the people residing will rise back up and rebuild.