Lebanese survey devastation after massive Beirut explosion

Residents of Beirut awoke to a scene of utter devastation on Wednesday, a day after a massive explosion at port sent shock waves across Lebanese capital, killing dozens of people and wounding thousands.

Smoke was still rising from port, where a towering grain silos h been shattered. Major downtown streets were littered with debris and damd vehicles, and building faces were blown out. At hospitals across city people h been waiting all night for news of loved ones who h gone missing or were wounded. Ors posted requests for help online.

Authorities said Tuesday that at least 70 people were killed and 3,000 wounded, with toll likely to rise as more bodies are being pulled from rubble.

It was unclear what caused blast, which appeared to have been triggered by a fire and struck with force of an earthquake. It was most powerful explosion ever seen in city, which was on front lines of 1975-1990 civil war and has endured conflicts with neighboring Israel and periodic bombings and terror attacks.

“L’Apocalypse,” re front p of Leban’s French L’Orient Le Jour newspaper. Ar paper, al-Akhbar, h a photo of a destroyed port with words: “ Great Collapse.”

Leban was alrey on brink of collapse amid a severe ecomic crisis that has ignited mass protests in recent months. Its hospitals are confronting a surge in coronavirus cases, and re were concerns virus could spre furr as people flooded into hospitals.

Interior Minister Mohammed Fahmi told a local TV station that it appeared blast was caused by detonation of more than 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate that h been stored in a warehouse at dock ever since it was confiscated from a cargo ship in 2014.

Witnesses reported seeing an orange cloud like that which appears when toxic nitrogen dioxide gas is released after an explosion involving nitrates.

Videos showed what looked like a fire erupting nearby just before, and local TV stations reported that a fireworks warehouse was involved. fire appeared to spre to a nearby building, triggering explosion, sending up a mushroom cloud and generating a shock wave.

“It was a real horror show. I haven’t seen anything like that since days of (civil) war,” said Marwan Raman, who was about 500 meters (yards) from port and was kcked off his feet by force of explosion.

blast destroyed numerous apartment buildings, potentially leaving large numbers of people homeless at a time when many Lebanese have lost ir jobs and seen ir savings evaporate because of a currency crisis. explosion also raises concerns about how Leban will continue to import nearly all of its vital goods with its main port devastated.

re is also issue of food security in Leban, a tiny country alrey hosting over 1 million Syrians amid that country’s yearslong war.

port's major grain silo is run by Lebanese Ministry of Ecomy and Tre. Drone foot shot Wednesday by Associated Press showed that blast tore open those grain silos, dumping ir contents into debris and earth thrown up by blast. Some 80% of Leban’s wheat supply is imported, according to U.S. Agriculture Department.

Estimates suggest some 85% of country’s grain was stored at w-destroyed silos.

Leban’s state-run National News ncy quoted Raoul Nehme, minister of ecomy and tre, as saying that all wheat stored at facility h been “contaminated” and couldn’t be used. However, he insisted Leban h eugh wheat for its immediate needs.

Nehme said Leban also would import more wheat for its needs.

tiny Mediterranean nation's ecomic crisis is rooted in deces of systemic corruption and poor governance by political class that has ruled country since end of civil war. Lebanese have held mass protests calling for sweeping political change since last autumn but few of ir demands have been met as ecomic situation has steily worsened.