Ammonium nitrate causes Beirut’s huge explosion [Video]

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• The ongoing investigation about the huge explosion in Beirut, Lebanon, is leading towards the abandoned Russian ship docked at the city port and storing 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate, officials said.
• The massive explosion destroyed over $10 billion worth of properties and left more than 5,000 casualties which include at least 135 deaths.
• The Lebanese government declared a two-week state of emergency and placed Beirut under military rule as port officials are being investigated regarding the presence of ammonium nitrate.

According to authorities, the ongoing investigation of the tragic Beirut blasts that left more than 5,000 injured people and at least 135 fatalities was leading to the Russian ship as the reason for the massive explosion. 

Carrying 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate and without appropriate security warnings, the ship was docked for almost seven years at the capital’s port due to a financial fallout. Officials described the ship as a “floating bomb.”

Over the years, Lebanese customs Director Badri Daher has repeatedly submitted letters to the judiciary and cautioned that the cargo was like a “floating bomb,” but no action was made to address the abandoned ship.

During an interview with LBC TV on late Wednesday, Daher said he particularly requested the authorities to remove the ammonium nitrate from the port since it was capable of getting blown up.

Calling out the risks to officials was “extra work,” Daher claimed. He said that it was the port authority’s job to evaluate and have the materials placed properly elsewhere.

The Russian ship was held over technical issues and it was barred from sailing.

“Owing to the risks associated with retaining the Ammonium Nitrate on board the vessel, the port authorities discharged the cargo onto the port’s warehouses. The vessel and cargo remain to date in port awaiting auctioning and/or proper disposal,” lawyers acting on behalf of creditors wrote in 2015, the Washington Post reported.

According to the lawyers, the ship was abandoned by its owners when it ran out of supplies and the people on board had to return back to Russia because of the immigration restrictions in Beirut.

The destruction costs around $10 billion to $15 billion, Beirut Governor Marwan Abboud told the Saudi-owned TV station Al-Hadalth on Wednesday. Abboud said that almost 300,000 residents are homeless.

In a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Lebanese President Michel Aoun pledged that the investigation will be transparent and that justice would be served.

Numerous Beirut port officials were put under house arrest as ordered by the cabinet as the ongoing investigation is looking into how ammonium nitrate was left at the port for years. A two-week state of emergency was also declared by the government, thereby putting the city under military rule.

On another note, investigators are also looking at another angle that suggests that the blast started when welders were fixing a broken gate and a wall of Hangar 12, where the destructive material was located.

Based on local news reports, security forces ordered the repair work since they worry about getting robbed.

The Russian cargo, named MV Rhosus, docked in Lebanon’s capital in 2013 when the financial snag happened, based on documents and Lebanese officials as reported by the Washington Post. The 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate it was carrying, along with agricultural fertilizer, was supposedly on board to Mozambique.

Source: Fox News