BEIRUT: A massive bomb explosion near the center of Beirut killed at least 100 people, injured over 4,000 others and sent shock-waves across the capital city of Lebanon, shattering windows, and causing apartment balconies to collapse, witnesses and officials said, adding the fatality toll is expected to rise.
The most powerful explosion to hit Beirut in years shook the ground, leaving some residents thinking an earthquake had struck. Dazed and weeping, some of them wounded, people walked through streets checking to see if relatives were hurt.
The blast occurred in the city’s port area, where there were warehouses housing explosives, Lebanon’s state news agency NNA and two security sources said. A third security source said there were chemicals stored in the area.
Footage of the blast shared by residents on social media showed a column of smoke rising from the port district followed by an enormous blast. Those filming what initially appeared to be a big blaze were thrown backwards by the shock of the explosion.
At least 10 bodies were taken to hospitals, a security source and a medical source told Reuters. The Lebanese Red Cross said hundreds of people were taken hospitals for treatment.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun called for an emergency meeting of the country’s Supreme Defence Council, according to the presidency’s Twitter account.
The meeting was set to be held “at the Baabda Palace”, or Qantari Palace, the president’s official residence, the tweet read.
It was not immediately clear what caused the blaze that set off the blast or what kind of explosives were in the warehouses.
Lebanon’s Internal Security Chief Abbas Ibrahim, touring the port area, said he would not preempt investigations. An Israeli official said Israel had nothing to do with the blast.
The governor of Beirut port told media that a team of firefighters at the scene had “disappeared” after the explosion.
“I saw a fireball and smoke billowing over Beirut. People were screaming and running, bleeding. Balconies were blown off buildings. Glass in high-rise buildings shattered and fell to the street,” said an eye witness.
