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Beirut Explosion

Blackadder1916

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Accident maybe, but nothing that happens in Beirut is beyond speculation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKFupx9x0-k

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-53656220
Beirut blast: Dozens dead and thousands injured, health minister says

A large blast in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, has killed at least 27 people and injured more than 2,000 others, the health minister says.

It is not yet clear what caused the explosion in the port region. Videos posted online showed a column of smoke followed by a large mushroom cloud.

Hospitals are said to be overwhelmed and many buildings have been destroyed.

Lebanon's internal security chief said the blast happened in an area housing highly explosive materials.

A BBC journalist at the scene reported dead bodies and severe damage, enough to put the port out of action.

The explosion comes at a sensitive time for Lebanon, with an economic crisis reigniting old divisions. Tensions are also high ahead of Friday's verdict in a trial over the killing of ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005.

Some reports suggest the explosion may have been an accident. Lebanon's National News Agency reported a fire breaking out at what it called an explosives depot at the port before the explosion.

Local media showed people trapped beneath rubble. A witness described the first explosion as deafening, and video footage showed wrecked cars and blast-damaged buildings.

President Michel Aoun called for an emergency meeting of the Supreme Defence Council, the presidency said on Twitter. Wednesday has been declared a day of mourning, the prime minister said.

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the government was "ready to offer help and support" while French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said France was also ready to offer assistance.

. . .

 
They were storing Ammonium Nitrate there from a seizure several years ago as well. A friend of mine speculates that the red smoke is from the decomposing nitrates releasing NO2. 
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nr9_kvw2aO0


HOLY COW!! 

Seriously, I know it might sound empty, but genuinely - God speed to anybody that was near there.  That's absolutely horrible, regardless of the cause.  My jaw dropped when I saw that clip  :eek:
 
Roughly 2750 tons of Ammonium Nitrate. That's equivalent to about 1.2kt. So a bit under half a Halifax Explosion, or half a Port Chicago Disaster.  :'(

There would have been a lot of people standing at windows watching the fire.
 
Colin P said:
They were storing Ammonium Nitrate there from a seizure several years ago as well. A friend of mine speculates that the red smoke is from the decomposing nitrates releasing NO2.

Read three interesting things of note:
1.  The red smoke is apparently associated with older generations.of missile propellant
2.  The Lebanese Health Minister has supposedly requested an evacuation from the air out of fear the gas is highly toxic.  Not being an expert I'm not sure if that sync's up with claims it is just "fertilizer" or not.
3.  If you watch the attached video, there must have been three explosions.  The first generated white smoke in the adjacent building (which is what lead everyone to start filming).  But if you hit the link to the video you can see the red cloud was fully developed prior to what appears like the main massive blast coming from underneath....which appears to have been different substance than second explosion.

Link to Twitter Video: https://mobile.twitter.com/iamtheopeyemii/status/1290763122089897986
 
https://www.livescience.com/28841-fertilizer-explosions-ammonium-nitrate.html
 
Another update....

https://mobile.twitter.com/IntelCrab/status/1290782284686266372
 
Another video from different angle. Other videos show smaller explosions at the base of the cloud prior to the main explosion.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEdzwHg_aEU

Its fortunate those two high rises weren't destroyed in the blast.

Prayers to everyone caught in the blast.




 
An update from Euro News showing where the explosion took place:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voVobsFOJUI
 
Retired AF Guy said:
Another video from different angle. Other videos show smaller explosions at the base of the cloud prior to the main explosion.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEdzwHg_aEU

Its fortunate those two high rises weren't destroyed in the blast.

Prayers to everyone caught in the blast.

That tallest high rise is "La Citadel de Beyrouth", an apartment building. It's about 2.2-2.5km from the blast site. It was probably unaffected. Windows would be gone out to about half of that.
 
Payback for a fallen  leader ?Blue on blue accident ? Or the Israelis.  No telling.
 
tomahawk6 said:
Payback for a fallen  leader ?Blue on blue accident ? Or the Israelis.  No telling.

Or simply a fire at a storage facility where proper safety procedures were not being followed.  A terrible tragedy whatever the cause.  Hopes and prayers for all those affected.
 
tomahawk6 said:
Payback for a fallen  leader ?Blue on blue accident ? Or the Israelis.  No telling.

Really.  No telling. 

If you hear hoof beats, try and expect a horse.

Not a zebra.  Not a unicorn.  Not even Newt from Hercules. 

Just a horse.

I will wait for the facts to solidify, but this sure looks like a horse to me.
 
Those twitter threads are crazy. For comparison purposes, the Oklahoma city bombing had about 2 tonnes of ammonium nitrate with some fuel, and this had over 1000 times that in a sketchy old warehouse. The death toll is unfortunately going to be much higher; really unfortunate lesson on why safe chemical storage is important.
 
Brihard said:
Roughly 2750 tons of Ammonium Nitrate. That's equivalent to about 1.2kt. So a bit under half a Halifax Explosion, or half a Port Chicago Disaster.  :'(

There would have been a lot of people standing at windows watching the fire.

I have heard it might have been as much as 6500 tons, either way stupid to keep such stuff in a city centre.

In one of the videos you can see the shock wave ripping apart buildings
 
Good OSINT examination at Bellingcat with imagery and video:

What Just Blew Up In Beirut?
...
Geoloc-2.jpg

https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2020/08/04/what-just-blew-up-in-beirut/

Mark
Ottawa

 
Brihard said:
Roughly 2750 tons of Ammonium Nitrate. That's equivalent to about 1.2kt. So a bit under half a Halifax Explosion, or half a Port Chicago Disaster.  :'(

Colin P said:
I have heard it might have been as much as 6500 tons,

For context, the Oklahoma City bombers used 2 tons of ammonium nitrate to build the bomb that blew open the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building way back in 1995, a deadly explosion that killed 168 people.


 
mariomike said:
For context, the Oklahoma City bombers used 2 tons of ammonium nitrate to build the bomb that blew open the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building way back in 1995, a deadly explosion that killed 168 people.

ANFO (Ammonium Nitrate/ Fuel Oil) is the explosive of choice for a lot of terrorist organizations, like the IRA. It is easily manufactured from high NPK content fertilizer and diesel fuel. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANFO

It is, however, highly unstable and has resulted in more than its fair share of ‘own goals’. I’m wondering out loud if this might be one of those. On a massive scale of course.
 
daftandbarmy said:
It is, however, highly unstable and has resulted in more than its fair share of ‘own goals’. I’m wondering out loud if this might be one of those. On a massive scale of course.

That would be the score of a rather one sided Superbowl...

MM
 
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