Beirut After The Blast: The Destruction Is Catastrophic

The Beirut blast attributed to detonation at an ammonium nitrate facility is now being blamed for 100 deaths and at least 4,000 wounded. The images out of the Beirut port show total annihilation after 2,700 tons of the ammonium nitrate ignited. Government officials say it had been stored at the facility since being confiscated from a cargo ship in 2014.

Drone footage shot Wednesday by The Associated Press showed that the blast tore open a cluster of towering grain silos, dumping their contents into the debris and earth thrown up by the blast. Some 80% of Lebanon’s wheat supply is imported, according to the U.S. Agriculture Department.

Estimates suggest some 85% of the country’s grain was stored at the now-destroyed silos.

It’s being reported that upwards of 300,000 people have been left homeless from the destruction in the blast’s way. One official says the destruction resembles Hiroshima and Nagasaki after the atomic bombs were dropped on those cities during World War II.

The blast is said to have rattled windows in Cyprus, which is 100 miles away.

Before and after of the explosion site in Beirut #Lebanon #Beirut pic.twitter.com/O19hHunYpl

— CNW (@ConflictsW) August 5, 2020

Massive explosion recorded in Lebanon. #beirutblast (🗒 @borzou) pic.twitter.com/yY4XnDOK6C

— Anonymous (@YourAnonCentral) August 4, 2020

This video captures the terrifying moment a bride posing for photographs on her wedding day is rocked by the massive warehouse explosion in Beirut. https://t.co/67cHoGsNc4 pic.twitter.com/NVpCUogop7

— CBS News (@CBSNews) August 5, 2020