Heartbroken for Beirut

AnnieA

AnnieA

Well-known Member
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Especially for the medical personnel and families that are already dealing with the pandemic. There are over 70 known killed, nearly 4,000 injured by the blast that was equivalent to a 4.5 earthquake. Many embassies in the area.

Beirut explosion

In the top clip in the article, the people who were filming before the final blast are very lucky to be alive.

Telegraph UK tweet states UK embassy had a small number of non-life threatening injuries. US embassy twitter feed says "closely following reports."

Australian PM states "Our embassy in Beirut has been impacted significantly, but I can report all of our staff there are okay..."
 

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I;m reading this ammonium nitrate was "confiscated" and stored there since 2014. Who stored it a nd what on earth were they going to do with it?

Isn't ammonium nitrate actually chicken manure used for fertilizing as well as a powerful explosive?

Does anyone know if it was ignited deliberately or simply a case of spontaneous combustion?
 
RadishRose said:
I;m reading this ammonium nitrate was "confiscated" and stored there since 2014. Who stored it a nd what on earth were they going to do with it?

Isn't ammonium nitrate actually chicken manure used for fertilizing as well as a powerful explosive?

Does anyone know if it was ignited deliberately or simply a case of spontaneous combustion?
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I don't think they know what ignited it but it's being reported that it was was 2,750 metric tonnes (>3,000 US tons) in a warehouse. Timothy McVeigh used 2 tons in Oklahoma City.

The videos show small fireworks type detonations, then a larger explosion, then the BIG one, so it may have initially started with a fireworks warehouse that sparked the ammonium nitrate warehouse. Fireworks were mentioned by French media early on.

How did "Clearing out the 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate" not go to the top of the to-do list six years ago!?!
 
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AnnieA said:
I don't think they know what ignited it but it's being reported that it was was 2,750 metric tonnes (>2,900 US tons) in a warehouse. Timothy McVeigh used 2 tons in Oklahoma City.

The videos show small fireworks type detonations, then a larger explosion, then the BIG one, so it may have initially started with a fireworks warehouse that sparked the ammonium nitrate warehouse. Fireworks were mentioned by French media early on.

How did "Clearing out the 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate" not go to the top of the to-do list six years ago!?!
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Thanks for filling in what I missed AnnieA, Agree on that "to do list"!
 
fmdog44 said:
Don't forget we are talking the Middle East.
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I took it that he meant safety measures were more lax in the ME ( & ME countries rank low on IQ scores by nation) ...not that the injured people mattered less.

This is a supposed pic of the warehouse before the explosion with the stuff just sitting around in bags.

From wikipedia: Ammonium nitrate has a critical relative humidity off 59.4%, above which it will absorb moisture from the atmosphere. Therefore, it is important to store ammonium nitrate in a tightly sealed container.

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CNN says there were 250,000 pounds of Anomia Nitrate stored in warehouse for six years with no monitoring.
Accident-hope so
Ship loaded with Anomia Nitrate blew up in Texas City, Tx in 1947-581 dead.

That's what Timothy McVeigh used in Oklahoma City

Really bad stuff!
 
Beirut was once called the Jewel Of The East and The Paris Of The Middle East.

It was very cosmopolitan, with elegant hotels and shops; casinos and nightlife. I've been told certain sections had their streets lined with beautiful palm trees and the mountains, cedar and ruins of Baalbek were big tourist attractions.

It was not under Muslim rule nor Sharia law, so wealthier non-believers from some surrounding countries would hop on a jet to party in Beirut where they could drink and party at the fashionable clubs.

I knew a guy who was in the service and R&R'd in Lebanon. He said it was beautiful and the people's hospitality the best he's ever known.
 
RadishRose said:
Beirut was once called the Jewel Of The East and The Paris Of The Middle East.

It was very cosmopolitan, with elegant hotels and shops; casinos and nightlife. I've been told certain sections had their streets lined with beautiful palm trees and the mountains, cedar and ruins of Baalbek were big tourist attractions.

I knew a guy who was in the service and R&R'd in Lebanon. He said it was beautiful and the people's hospitality the best he's ever known.
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I knew some older Sailors who had been on "Liberty" there and they always said that it was one of there favorite ports.
 
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