Fire breaks out at Beirut’s port after last month’s deadly explosion

Sep 10, 2020

Another fire in Beirut prompted panic on Thursday. The Beirut port explosion that killed nearly 200 people in the city was only a little over a month ago.

This time, a large fire broke out in a warehouse in Beirut port’s duty-free zone. The warehouse stored tires, the state-run National News Agency reported.

Videos obtained by Lebanese media outlets showed a massive blaze that created even bigger clouds of black smoke. Both civil defense firefighters and the Lebanese army are working to extinguish the flames and using helicopters to shoot water down from above, the Lebanese army said in a statement.

On Aug. 4, a massive blast ripped through the Beirut port when some 2,700 tons of the fertilizer ammonium nitrate caught fire and exploded. The investigation and search for the missing continue.

Lebanese people have experienced significant hardship since the August explosion, and Thursday’s fire has added to this. Many lost their businesses, and hundreds of thousands were rendered homeless as a result of the explosion. Lebanon was already reeling from a financial crisis that included the devaluation of the Lebanese pound against the dollar and banks instituting limits on how much people can withdraw. There have been anti-government protests since October, and anger at the government strengthened following the explosion.