Beirut Explosion

[lucklucky]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toulouse_chemical_factory_explosion

[Mikel2]

Holy cow.

 

https://youtu.be/FdCWolIi3OA

[Josh]

Ouch.

 

 

Actually I would say, that is a bit of a testament to the modern buildings behind the water front. I'm sure flying glass went everywhere, but those skyscrapers are surprisingly intact given that shock wave.

[Detonable]

The bride in Mikels video has a very nice rack. The groom got lucky twice today.

 

I like the way the grain silo blocked the shock wave. The imprint continues some distance.

 

I saw a news program with 7 videos of the explosion. In one shot quite close, you can see the shock wave ripping light structures off of a building 1 block closer. Then it hits the camera, twisting it around. The cameraman appears briefly in the shot. I wonder if he survived the blast.

[Ivanhoe]

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/08/05/Watch-Closest-footage-yet-of-Beirut-blasts-from-apartment-balcony-opposite-port.html

[NickM]

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/08/05/Watch-Closest-footage-yet-of-Beirut-blasts-from-apartment-balcony-opposite-port.html

[lucklucky]

More evidence there appears to be some fireworks also. Hope those 2 survived.

Edited August 6, 2020 by lucklucky

[Stuart Galbraith]

 

Ouch.

 

 

Actually I would say, that is a bit of a testament to the modern buildings behind the water front. I'm sure flying glass went everywhere, but those skyscrapers are surprisingly intact given that shock wave.

 

There is a British bomb disposal expert called Chris Hunter, wrote a truly excellent book called 'Eight Lives down', about bomb disposal in Iraq. Anyway he gave his opinion that the grain silo was a very fortunate think. It probably saved dozens of lives fromt the blast, which looking how one side was pretty much vapourized, seems entirely believable. Pretty much a blast wall.

[Stuart Galbraith]

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/08/05/Watch-Closest-footage-yet-of-Beirut-blasts-from-apartment-balcony-opposite-port.html

If you notice there are some poor bastards near the fire taking photos on their mobile phones. Little did they know....

 

Belay that, I thinkthey are forklifts flashing. There are at least 2 guys stood next to them though.

Edited August 6, 2020 by Stuart Galbraith

[R011]

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/08/05/Watch-Closest-footage-yet-of-Beirut-blasts-from-apartment-balcony-opposite-port.html

Imad should have come inside. I hope they survived.

[Jeff]

 

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/08/05/Watch-Closest-footage-yet-of-Beirut-blasts-from-apartment-balcony-opposite-port.html

Imad should have come inside. I hope they survived.

 

 

Yeah but closing the glass door was probably going to be worse than leaving it open.

[R011]

 

 

 

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/08/05/Watch-Closest-footage-yet-of-Beirut-blasts-from-apartment-balcony-opposite-port.html

Imad should have come inside. I hope they survived.

Yeah but closing the glass door was probably going to be worse than leaving it open.

Oh yeah.

 

Who would think that nearly 3kT of explosive are just sitting there ready to detonate? If I had a front row seat to a fire like that, I would be rubbernecking too.

[bojan]

If it was just sitting there it could have sat for another 100 years. But storing other flammable stuff next to it...

I have visited largest local fertilizer factory during my university classes, their huge AN storage was a large concrete pit with 2+m high 45deg angle blast curtains outside. It was enclosed in the light anti-weather construction. Outside of it there was 5+m wide water filled anti-fire ditch. Even in the case of detonation fact that AN was stored below a local ground level and with blast curtains would have meant that majority of the blast would have been directed upward. But that was a propper storage, it looks this one was temporary and everyone forgot about it until it went kaboom.

Edited August 6, 2020 by bojan

[Stuart Galbraith]

There is apparently a petition among the Lebanese demanding for the French to take over Lebanon and restart the old French mandate. Yes, you know things are bad when you would rather have Emanuel Macron instead of your own Government.

[Yama]

If it was just sitting there it could have sat for another 100 years. But storing other flammable stuff next to it...

I have visited largest local fertilizer factory during my university classes, their huge AN storage was a large concrete pit with 2+m high 45deg angle blast curtains outside. It was enclosed in the light anti-weather construction. Outside of it there was 5+m wide water filled anti-fire ditch. Even in the case of detonation fact that AN was stored below a local ground level and with blast curtains would have meant that majority of the blast would have been directed upward. But that was a propper storage, it looks this one was temporary and everyone forgot about it until it went kaboom.

It wasn't forgotten, harbour officials made a number of requests to sell or get rid of the stuff which they thought was dangerous. But higher-ups in the bureaucracy weren't interested, because it would have required some effort and probably would have costed money.

[Ivanhoe]

https://twitter.com/JasonMBrodsky/status/1291052928443260928?s=20

 

Big fire in UAE, also Najaf Iraq.

 

Hmmmm.

[DKTanker]

 

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/08/05/Watch-Closest-footage-yet-of-Beirut-blasts-from-apartment-balcony-opposite-port.html

Imad should have come inside. I hope they survived.

 

On a related note, I was surprised to learn that the word "please" was part of the colloquial Lebanese-Arabic vocabulary.

[Josh]

 

If it was just sitting there it could have sat for another 100 years. But storing other flammable stuff next to it...

I have visited largest local fertilizer factory during my university classes, their huge AN storage was a large concrete pit with 2+m high 45deg angle blast curtains outside. It was enclosed in the light anti-weather construction. Outside of it there was 5+m wide water filled anti-fire ditch. Even in the case of detonation fact that AN was stored below a local ground level and with blast curtains would have meant that majority of the blast would have been directed upward. But that was a propper storage, it looks this one was temporary and everyone forgot about it until it went kaboom.

It wasn't forgotten, harbour officials made a number of requests to sell or get rid of the stuff which they thought was dangerous. But higher-ups in the bureaucracy weren't interested, because it would have required some effort and probably would have costed money.

 

 

The Port Beirut is run by Maronite Christians, the same way the airport is run by Hezbollah. I have a friend who theorizes that the reason the explosives were never removed is that the Aoun crowd was saving it for a rainy carbomb season.

[Adam Peter]

https://twitter.com/JasonMBrodsky/status/1291052928443260928?s=20

 

Big fire in UAE, also Najaf Iraq.

 

Hmmmm.

And the World Trade Center at Brussels is burning, too...

[WRW]

https://twitter.com/JasonMBrodsky/status/1291052928443260928?s=20

 

Big fire in UAE, also Najaf Iraq.

 

Hmmmm.

Was having dinner near by with my better half - lots of smoke and low flame at the fire site - Fire Service did not have a problem with it. It seem to have started in a Shisha joint.

Not many fires here but some periodically.

Edited August 6, 2020 by WRW

[WRW]

 

Duplicate

Edited August 6, 2020 by WRW

[R011]

 

 

 

 

If it was just sitting there it could have sat for another 100 years. But storing other flammable stuff next to it...

I have visited largest local fertilizer factory during my university classes, their huge AN storage was a large concrete pit with 2+m high 45deg angle blast curtains outside. It was enclosed in the light anti-weather construction. Outside of it there was 5+m wide water filled anti-fire ditch. Even in the case of detonation fact that AN was stored below a local ground level and with blast curtains would have meant that majority of the blast would have been directed upward. But that was a propper storage, it looks this one was temporary and everyone forgot about it until it went kaboom.

It wasn't forgotten, harbour officials made a number of requests to sell or get rid of the stuff which they thought was dangerous. But higher-ups in the bureaucracy weren't interested, because it would have required some effort and probably would have costed money.

The Port Beirut is run by Maronite Christians, the same way the airport is run by Hezbollah. I have a friend who theorizes that the reason the explosives were never removed is that the Aoun crowd was saving it for a rainy carbomb season.

Thats a reason, but they could have moved it to somewhere much safer

[R011]

There must be multiple large fires happening every day. Usually, they are just local news because most large concentrations of explosives arent stored in a fireworks factory.

[MiloMorai]

MASSIVE Beirut Explosion & Aftermath (ALL ANGLES)

https://youtu.be/U_ACUsGdHyY

[lucklucky]

 

 

If it was just sitting there it could have sat for another 100 years. But storing other flammable stuff next to it...

I have visited largest local fertilizer factory during my university classes, their huge AN storage was a large concrete pit with 2+m high 45deg angle blast curtains outside. It was enclosed in the light anti-weather construction. Outside of it there was 5+m wide water filled anti-fire ditch. Even in the case of detonation fact that AN was stored below a local ground level and with blast curtains would have meant that majority of the blast would have been directed upward. But that was a propper storage, it looks this one was temporary and everyone forgot about it until it went kaboom.

It wasn't forgotten, harbour officials made a number of requests to sell or get rid of the stuff which they thought was dangerous. But higher-ups in the bureaucracy weren't interested, because it would have required some effort and probably would have costed money.

 

 

The Port Beirut is run by Maronite Christians, the same way the airport is run by Hezbollah. I have a friend who theorizes that the reason the explosives were never removed is that the Aoun crowd was saving it for a rainy carbomb season.

 

Aoun is allied with Hezbollah.They have been in an alliance for more than a decade.