No fewer than 137 people were killed and thousands injured in a massive explosion at the port in Beirut, ravaging the heart of the city’s vibrant downtown business district.
The giant explosion at a warehouse in the port sent a shock wave through downtown Beirut at about 6 p.m. local time on Tuesday.
Videos of the blast posted on social media showed smoke billowing from the warehouse on the waterfront before a massive explosion produced a dome-shaped cloud that engulfed that area.
The force of the blast did tremendous damage to the surrounding neighborhoods and nearby buildings, tearing off balconies and shattering windows. It blanketed the city in debris and ash for miles around.
What caused the explosion in Beirut?
Authorities say the blast occurred when a fire at a warehouse—Hangar 12—on the city’s waterfront ignited a cache of ammonium nitrate, an explosive material that had been stored at the site for more than six years.
Ammonium nitrate is a chemical compound most commonly used in fertilizers. It is also used to make explosives.
The big question now is, how are the Lebanese people responding or dealing with the disastrous explosion and providing relief to people affected by the blast?
Well, days after the explosion, the people of Lebanon gathered together and decided to employ locally-led efforts for the benefit of all by cleaning up their city in a collective effort.
Volunteers equipped with masks, brooms and goodwill, have shown up to clean-up communities devastated by the catastrophic explosions.
Meanwhile, as everyone is pitching in to support communities devastated by the explosions, even before the impact of Covid-19, families were struggling in the face of economic collapse, daily power cuts, a lack of safe drinking water and limited public healthcare.
The disaster risks pushing vulnerable families even closer to the brink.
UNICEF is on the ground working to reach over 100,000 children affected with health care, water and pyschosocial support.