Massive blast in Beirut, Lebanon

[nsaspook]

Based on the delay, This couple was less than 2,000 feet from the blast.

Great comment: She is going to use this against him forever...

 

[chemisttree]

The Governor says that 300,000 have lost their homes. What a tragedy!

 

[256bits]

've seen one undated picture that shows 1000 kg bags stored haphazardly, two-bags high and apparently side-by-side. It was a disaster waiting to happen.

good picture of the storage.
I didn't know if the storage was in bulk bins, the bulk bags, so I went with the 50 pound consumer bags.
That stuff must have been caked up and hard as a rock after all this time.

 

[diogenesNY]

I had heard the BBC radio reports of this in the morning, and seen a few photos later in the day, but the posted video was the first I had seen of video coverage.

Good God! That was absolutely apocalyptic! I am wondering if/how much some of those videographers were injured... Not even sure what intelligent comment I can offer other than abject shock. I could make a rambling rant about the plight of merchant seafarers working in sub-human conditions, and how this can allow situations like this to develop... but it seems kinda academic under the current circumstances.

Holy crap! um... I'm kind of at a loss.

diogenesNY

 

[DaveC426913]

I am astonished, and relieved, that the death toll is only a hundred and change (even if the collateral damage is huge). That explosion could have killed thousands.

 

[Astronuc]

Some good graphics in this NY Times article.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/09/world/middleeast/beirut-explosion.html

 

[256bits]

to add insult to injury, another fire at the port a month after the blast.

Quote
Large fire erupts in Beirut port area, a month after massive blast | CBC News

Michel Najjar, public works minister in the outgoing government, which resigned in the wake of the blast, told Lebanon's MTV the fire had been brought under control, saying initial indications suggested the blaze was sparked by repair work at the port.
...
Carmen Geha, an activist and associate professor at the American University of Beirut, said the fire was further proof of mismanagement by a ruling elite, who have dragged the nation into crisis after years of corruption and poor governance.
"It's a gross crime, gross negligence and gross arrogance," she said. "You can't trust them to manage anything."
UNQUOTE
https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/large-fire-erupts-in-beirut-port-1.5718447

 

[dlgoff]

Wow. What two things do you notice about the vehicle parked in front of this damaged building?

https://www.cnn.com/middleeast/live-news/lebanon-beirut-explosion-live-updates-dle-intl/index.html

View attachment 267294

Spoiler

The side is dented in, and it looks like the side airbag curtains have gone off. Wow.

It's still on all four wheels. Amazing.