[Broncho]

Wow

https://news.sky.com/story/lebanon-l...eirut-12042456

[j.s.]

Originally Posted by Broncho

Wow

https://news.sky.com/story/lebanon-l...eirut-12042456

I heard the blast, and the windows were shaking at my house in Nicosia, Cyprus, 240 km or 150 miles away.

I went outside to check if I could see something.

[MashinBenzin]

Holy shit


https://twitter.com/saif_camerapixo/...456136194?s=21

[JustChris]

Originally Posted by MashinBenzin

Holy shit


https://twitter.com/saif_camerapixo/...456136194?s=21

FFS!!!

When you start the video I thought that was it, the aftermath, then you see those shockwaves.

Scary AF.

How are 10 people confirmed dead that looks like it wipes out all life for several blocks

[MashinBenzin]

Originally Posted by JustChris

FFS!!!

When you start the video I thought that was it, the aftermath, then you see those shockwaves.

Scary AF.

How are 10 people confirmed dead that looks like it wipes out all life for several blocks

Thought the same mate, that massive explosion is something on another scale. Looks like entire apartment blocks must have been flattened. Surely on a 9/11 casualty scale, unless they had managed major evacuations once the first fire started.

[3-GT]

Bloody hell.

[Arcticdan]

Bloody scary, I fear we are going to hear much more bad news about this over the next few hours/days!

[TiredGeek]

It's going to have been a gas storage facility or somesuch. The previous smoke cloud points to a fire that then ignites something bigger.
God help those affected.

[JustChris]

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

[225]

Its crazy. listening to the times radio they had a few reporters on who live there saying what happened. One was nearly a mile a way and her flat door blew off and all the windows smashed.

The video on sky where you can see the shock wave flattening buildings makes you think what kind of power a modern day nuke must have. That explosion would be nothing compared to an icbm landing on a city.

[mikeoz]

Looked like an Airstrike to me on first glance...Apparently some highly explosive material that was confiscated at port??

[strike4A]

Someone in the Lebanese government saying sodium nitrate exploded which had been confiscated off a ship last year and stored in a warehouse in the port. My chemistry is sketchy these days but I know ammonium nitrate (fertiliser) is very explosive in the right conditions. This warehouse was next to a bustling city centre with loads of restaurants etc.

Similar thing happened in Cyprus a few years ago where the navy there were storing explosives in a container also seized off a ship. That went off and took out a nearby power station but that area was sparsely populated unlike Beirut.

[ZedsRedBaby]

Yep, it's ammonium nitrate and apparently it's been there for about six years. So, erm, accident waiting to happen.

Lebanon doesn't have a lot of luck but ffs they really don't help themselves do they?

[Pittcrew]

Incredible video, literally looks like a miniature nuke went off. The shock wave was devastating. Really hope this wasn't intentional.

[kzg1969]

heard on the radio death toll risen to 70ish and 4000 injured.....even that sounds low!

[Broncho]

The tinfoil hattery begins!

I've been sent this numerous times this evening, absolute nonsense.

[Sasquartch]

Originally Posted by ZedsRedBaby

Lebanon doesn't have a lot of luck but ffs they really don't help themselves do they?

That is unfortunately true

It's interesting that the first reaction from the Lebanese govt is that the people responsible will be prosecuted etc, not a single mention of lessons that can be learnt, how can a similar accident be avoided in the future etc.

At least disasters here, eg Grenfell, have also resulted in lots of changes such as removal of similar cladding from other buildings and so on.