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Beirut explosion: at least 10 people feared dead in Lebanon blast – live updates Beirut explosion: dead and wounded among 'hundreds of casualties', says Lebanon Red Cross – live updates
(32 minutes later)
Scale and cause of blast still being assessed but multiple casualties expected Scale and cause of blast still being assessed amid reports hospitals too damaged to treat patients
The huge scale of the blast is becoming apparent as more photos show damage in many areas Beirut, some of which are far away from the port.
Beirut’s airport, for example, is 10 km (6 miles) away, but this photo from the Dubai-based news website, Al-Aan, shows extensive damage.
The Associated Press is quoting Lebanese Red Cross official Georges Kettaneh as saying there are “hundreds of casualties” in Beirut, including dead and wounded.
That is 234 km (145 miles) away.
My colleague Michael Safi just spoke to a resident there in the city of Larnaca.
“Everyone in Cyprus felt it,” said the person, who asked to be referred to only by his first name, George. “The door was shaking in my house. In Larnaca, they heard it and felt it … It was so loud we thought it happened here. My house was shaking.”
This map shows the location of the blast at Beirut’s port:
A doctor at St Joseph’s hospital, less than 2km (1.2 miles) from the blast, said dozens of injured people were being brought for treatment but were unable to be received because the hospital had been destroyed.
“They’re bringing people to the hospital but we can’t treat them,” he said. “They’re leaving them outside in the street. The hospital is broken, the ER is broken.”
Hospitals in Beirut need blood to deal with the influx of casualties.Hospitals in Beirut need blood to deal with the influx of casualties.
See below a callout from Yara Khaweja, who works form the International Committee of the Red Cross.See below a callout from Yara Khaweja, who works form the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The Lebanese Red Cross is also requesting only people in “critical or severe cases” to call their emergency number.The Lebanese Red Cross is also requesting only people in “critical or severe cases” to call their emergency number.
Reuters is now quoting Lebanese security and medical sources as saying at least ten people have been killed in the blast. That figure is a preliminary report, so it is likely to be updated.Reuters is now quoting Lebanese security and medical sources as saying at least ten people have been killed in the blast. That figure is a preliminary report, so it is likely to be updated.
My colleague in the city, Martin Chulov, has just sent me the below in an email:My colleague in the city, Martin Chulov, has just sent me the below in an email:
The streets of East Beirut lay in apocalyptic ruin even four kilometres from the epicentre of the blast. Every building in between had lost some if not all of its windows. Huge shards of glass covered roads, some jagged pieces had ripped through cars. Trees were shredded, and pools of blood were commonplace. Blood trails lead to cars, and motorbikes that had sped the injured away to clinics or hospitals that could not cope with the dead and maimed.The streets of East Beirut lay in apocalyptic ruin even four kilometres from the epicentre of the blast. Every building in between had lost some if not all of its windows. Huge shards of glass covered roads, some jagged pieces had ripped through cars. Trees were shredded, and pools of blood were commonplace. Blood trails lead to cars, and motorbikes that had sped the injured away to clinics or hospitals that could not cope with the dead and maimed.
Walking down through the east Beirut suburb of Ashrafiyeh to Gemmayze and towards the port, the devastation was even more comprehensive. Dozens of buildings had clearly suffered structural damage. Weeks of sustained artillery shelling could surely not cause the same amount of ruin.Walking down through the east Beirut suburb of Ashrafiyeh to Gemmayze and towards the port, the devastation was even more comprehensive. Dozens of buildings had clearly suffered structural damage. Weeks of sustained artillery shelling could surely not cause the same amount of ruin.
Men, women and children walked bewildered from somewhere near ground zero. Few were hurrying. Few could get past the debris if they tried. It takes a lot to shake Beirut, which has risen and fallen under bombs before. But in a city inured to explosions, this was something new.Men, women and children walked bewildered from somewhere near ground zero. Few were hurrying. Few could get past the debris if they tried. It takes a lot to shake Beirut, which has risen and fallen under bombs before. But in a city inured to explosions, this was something new.
Reuters news agency has a live feed of the blast site. It shows wreckage hundreds of metres around, with car alarms sounding in the background. It is now getting close to 8 pm in the city.Reuters news agency has a live feed of the blast site. It shows wreckage hundreds of metres around, with car alarms sounding in the background. It is now getting close to 8 pm in the city.
Here is another video from a different angle, apparently taken on a boat in the sea.Here is another video from a different angle, apparently taken on a boat in the sea.
In the footage, you can hear a man shouting “go! go!” in Arabic as the boat speeds away from the blast.In the footage, you can hear a man shouting “go! go!” in Arabic as the boat speeds away from the blast.
Please bear in mind that this is a developing event and very little has been confirmed.Please bear in mind that this is a developing event and very little has been confirmed.
Videos posted on Twitter show what appears to be smoke, possibly from an initial blast, and then a second, giant explosion that reverberates across the city.Videos posted on Twitter show what appears to be smoke, possibly from an initial blast, and then a second, giant explosion that reverberates across the city.
Hello,Hello,
Oliver Holmes here. You will have seen reports of the massive explosion at Beirut’s central port that has been felt far across the city. We will be following live developments here. The scale of the blast and its effects are still being assessed. Many are feared injured.Oliver Holmes here. You will have seen reports of the massive explosion at Beirut’s central port that has been felt far across the city. We will be following live developments here. The scale of the blast and its effects are still being assessed. Many are feared injured.
Read here the full report by my colleague, Michael Safi:Read here the full report by my colleague, Michael Safi: