Catastrophic Explosion in Beirut Port

Incident Type: - a. Maritime Alert

Region: - Mediterranean

Authority/ Reported By: - ASKET

Date:-04/08/20

Time:- 18:08

Position: - 33° 54′ 5″ N, 35° 31′ 8″ E

Remarks:

On the afternoon of 4 August 2020, two explosions occurred at the port of the city of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon. The extremely powerful second blast resulted in at least 220 deaths, 7,000 injuries, and US$10–15 billion in property damage, and made an estimated 300,000 people homeless.

The blast was linked to about 2,750 tonnes (3,030 short tons; 2,710 long tons) of ammonium nitrate – equivalent to around 1.2 kt of TNT – that had been confiscated by the Lebanese government from the abandoned ship MV Rhosus and stored in the port for six years.

The blast was detected by the United States Geological Survey as a seismic event of magnitude 3.3, which was felt in Turkey, Syria, Israel, and parts of Europe, and was heard in Cyprus more than 250 km (160 mi) away.

The blast was regarded as having been among the most powerful non-nuclear explosions in history.

The Lebanese government declared a two-week state of emergency in response to the disaster.

(Wikipedia)