Parents Evacuating While Holding Children, Store Owners Caught in Explosion
100 Dead, 4,000 Injured
More Victims Expected Under Building Debris
Video of local residents evacuating after a large explosion at a port warehouse in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, on the 4th (local time). / Photo by Internet video capture
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] A massive explosion occurred at a port warehouse in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, resulting in thousands of casualties. Videos capturing the tense moments during the explosion have been shared on social networking services (SNS), drawing significant attention.
On the 5th (local time), videos showing the damage at the time of the explosion were shared on Twitter and other SNS platforms.
In one video, upon hearing the explosion, a middle-aged man holds his son and looks out the window, then urgently takes shelter under a desk as smoke rushes into the house.
In another video, a woman cleaning the balcony drops the vacuum cleaner she was holding and quickly escapes the room carrying her daughter when the house shakes due to the explosion's impact.
Videos also captured citizens suddenly caught in the explosion. A shop owner hurriedly hides as all the windows shatter simultaneously, and footage from a street near the port where the explosion occurred shows citizens lying covered in blood.
Netizens who watched the videos expressed sorrow, commenting, "This is so horrific," "I hope all those people are safe," and "You can feel the desperation."
Meanwhile, the explosion followed a fire that broke out the previous day (the 4th) at a warehouse on the Beirut waterfront, escalating into a large-scale blast. The explosion shattered most windows within a 10km radius.
Houses and offices, as well as vehicles passing by or parked nearby, suffered severe damage, and some vehicles on the road were overturned by the shockwave.
According to the Lebanese Red Cross, equivalent to the Red Crescent in Islamic countries, more than 100 people have died and over 4,000 have been injured so far due to the explosion. Search and rescue operations are still ongoing, and it is suspected that more victims remain under building debris.
Many people were injured by broken glass shards, and hospitals faced blood shortages as patients flooded in.
The exact cause of the explosion has not yet been determined. However, the Lebanese government has pointed to a large quantity of ammonium nitrate stored in the warehouse at Beirut port where the explosion began as the cause.
Ammonium nitrate is known as a primary ingredient in fertilizers and is also used in civilian military supplies and explosives manufacturing. According to Lebanese authorities, 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate were stored in the warehouse at the time of the explosion.
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