OT: Pray for Beirut and Lebanon

[mtechnica]

Originally Posted by glepore

I do feel for them.

But who the hell stores over 50,000 lbs of ammonium nitrate next to a fireworks warehouse? I mean, what could go wrong?

Maybe they prayed that nothing bad would happen and just figured it would be ok, kind of like when people pray for the victims of the explosion as if it’s going to help them somehow.

[colker]

Bureaucracy, incompetence and corruption did it. It wasn´t an attack. There is no point in calling an attack when no one even comes up owning it.

[azrider]

Originally Posted by mtechnica

Maybe they prayed that nothing bad would happen and just figured it would be ok, kind of like when people pray for the victims of the explosion as if it’s going to help them somehow.

Good grief.......

[mjb266]

https://youtu.be/ROrpKx3aIjA

It happened at a Texas facility about a decade back. Killed half of the towns volunteer firefighters.

[reuben]

Originally Posted by Ozz

Those look like grain elevators....those are tough to take down

Yeah, I noticed that. If they are indeed grain elevators, that will be another hit to an already struggling population. Bread is a staple in that part of the world, often with long standing government subsidies, as in Egypt.

[Gsinill]

Just read that this stuff was on a ship from Georgia to Mozambique in 2013.
Due to an engine issue they docked in Beirut.
Apparently both, the Moldavian owner of the vessel and the seller of the cargo gave up on it.
In 2015 in order to get rid of the ship, the Lebanese authorities decided to unload it and store the ammonium nitrate in the same depot where is blew up 5 years later.
There was apparently a request every year to get rid of it by either sending it back to the original owner or to have it disposed by experts but it never happened.
Sounds like typical government bureaucracy got in the way...

[ERK55]

Originally Posted by reuben

Yeah, I noticed that. If they are indeed grain elevators, that will be another hit to an already struggling population. Bread is a staple in that part of the world, often with long standing government subsidies, as in Egypt.

It’s said that 85% of Lebanon’s grain stores were kept in that port area and are now destroyed.

[Keith A]

Originally Posted by ERK55

It’s said that 85% of Lebanon’s grain stores were kept in that port area and are now destroyed.

They are already having serious economic issues, this certainly won't help

[Velocipede]

ESI took hi-res images of the area after the explosion. Just devastating.

[haruharu]

it seems like Lebanon hasnt caught a break since the 50s. I will continue to keep them in my thoughts

[mtechnica]

Originally Posted by azrider

Good grief.......

Yeah, sorry for the rude comment. I guess I'm just frustrated.

[parris]

This is just horrible and crushing on many levels. The amount of loss is tough to deal with.

[AngryScientist]

Originally Posted by Velocipede

Just devastating.

For sure.

For a lot of us 2020 sucks, for many more things just got a whole lot worse.

what a mess. i'm sure Covid is just going to complicate and slow the recovery.

very sad.

[merckxman]

I was in Beirut in 1967, it was known as the Paris of the Middle East back then. Prayers for all.

[merckxman]

The ship on its side from the blast in photo above is 390 feet long, passenger ship Orient Queen.