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There are conflicting reports; but I think I'm beginning to get a clearer picture.

**** I'm not there and am relying on journalists and first-hand accounts***

It appears there was indeed a fire at a fireworks factory or warehouse.......in turn igniting a ship in the port that was carrying Ammonium nitrate.
 
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There are conflicting reports; but I think I'm beginning to get a clearer picture.

**** I'm not there and am relying on journalists and first-hand accounts***

It appears there was indeed a fire at a fireworks factory or warehouse.......that in turn igniting a ship in the port that was carrying Ammonium nitrate.

I wonder if the Halifax disaster was something like this...
 
Beirut Port, before and after yesterday's explosion, high-res satellite shots.

Before:

1596639994223.png


After:

1596640027879.png


Note the Crater where the explosion took place at Warehouse 12

The over-turned passenger ship

Warehouses 6, 9, 10, and 11 are all completely gone.

From Twitter:

 
The silos seems to have provided partial shielding of the blast wave (in fact it looks like it reflected at least some of it eastward).

AoD
 
This is what a chronically dysfunctional and sectarian government gets you.

Because of these IDPol divides and overlapping factions in government, things like these slip through the cracks in the consequently ineffectual bureaucracy and are unnoticed, until they blow/fall apart (looking at their public service issues, banking collapse, infrastructure problems, etc.).

At the same time, a fear of disrupting the fragile power balance and bad memories of the civil war is what also prevents these issues from being honestly addressed and for real reform to proceed.

Truly tragic for the citizens, who find themselves trapped in this nightmare with no easy way out- 2019-2020 has been an endless series of body blows for Lebanon- the country has been going forward purely by its past momentum for a while now, and each blow slows the country down more and more.
 
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I wonder if the Halifax disaster was something like this...

From the table near the bottom of this Wiki page, it seems Halifax was slightly ahead of Beirut in terms of explosive energy:


A similarity, which might be borne out in the days to come, is the preceding fire which attracted a lot of people to watch the harbour before the main explosion, resulting in facial/eye injuries. Building strength compared to 1917 wood frame Halifax might prove to be more substantial.

Who would have figure storing a few thousand tonnes of Ammonium Nitrate in a warehouse - for six years, let alone near an apparent fireworks site, is a bad idea.

Some estimates say that approx 85% of the country's grain reserve was stored in those elevators, now contaminated.
 
Shinzo Abe accused of going awol as Japan tackles Covid surge

Thu 6 Aug 2020

After Japan appeared to have brought the coronavirus outbreak under control in late May, the prime minister, Shinzo Abe, acclaimed his country’s response as a “model” for the rest of the world. It had avoided an explosion in cases, he said, and without the compulsory lockdowns imposed in Europe and the US.

Abe lifted the seven-week state of emergency, enabling bars and restaurants that had voluntarily closed to reopen for business. Plans were made to allow indoor events with up to 5,000 attendees, and the media trailed the launch of an economy-boosting nationwide tourism campaign.

But as it prepares for the Obon public holiday, when millions of people traditionally return to their hometowns, Japan is struggling to address record rises in Covid-19 cases amid renewed warnings about pressure on its health service, and its largely silent leader has been accused of abandoning his post.

Tokyo alone has reported more than 200 cases a day for the past 10 days, including a record 472 last Saturday and 360 on Thursday. Other urban hotspots are reporting similar surges in new infections, prompting local leaders to take action while ministers caution against any overreaction.

Political analysts speculate that Abe has settled on a laissez-faire approach, rather than make tough decisions on new restrictions that could send the world’s third-biggest economy, already officially in recession, deeper into the mire.

 
44,000 sign petition for France to take control of Lebanon

More than 40,000 people have signed a petition calling for France to take control of Lebanon following the deadly blast in Beirut. Critics say corruption and mismanagement by Lebanon's government was the cause.

Aug 6, 2020

Over 44,000 people have signed an online petition to "place Lebanon under a French mandate for the next 10 years" as of Thursday afternoon.

The petition on the community petition website Avaaz was reportedly set up by Lebanese citizens on Wednesday following the explosion that rocked Beirut on Tuesday, killing over 140 people and injuring more than 5,000.

"Lebanon’s officials have clearly shown a total inability to secure and manage the country," the petition reads. "With a failing system, corruption, terrorism and militia the country has just reached its last breath."

"We believe Lebanon should go back under the French mandate in order to establish a clean and durable governance."

 
Shinzo Abe accused of going awol as Japan tackles Covid surge

Thu 6 Aug 2020

After Japan appeared to have brought the coronavirus outbreak under control in late May, the prime minister, Shinzo Abe, acclaimed his country’s response as a “model” for the rest of the world. It had avoided an explosion in cases, he said, and without the compulsory lockdowns imposed in Europe and the US.

Abe lifted the seven-week state of emergency, enabling bars and restaurants that had voluntarily closed to reopen for business. Plans were made to allow indoor events with up to 5,000 attendees, and the media trailed the launch of an economy-boosting nationwide tourism campaign.

But as it prepares for the Obon public holiday, when millions of people traditionally return to their hometowns, Japan is struggling to address record rises in Covid-19 cases amid renewed warnings about pressure on its health service, and its largely silent leader has been accused of abandoning his post.

Tokyo alone has reported more than 200 cases a day for the past 10 days, including a record 472 last Saturday and 360 on Thursday. Other urban hotspots are reporting similar surges in new infections, prompting local leaders to take action while ministers caution against any overreaction.

Political analysts speculate that Abe has settled on a laissez-faire approach, rather than make tough decisions on new restrictions that could send the world’s third-biggest economy, already officially in recession, deeper into the mire.

The beginning of the Reiwa era must be very shaky.
 
44,000 sign petition for France to take control of Lebanon

More than 40,000 people have signed a petition calling for France to take control of Lebanon following the deadly blast in Beirut. Critics say corruption and mismanagement by Lebanon's government was the cause.

Aug 6, 2020

Over 44,000 people have signed an online petition to "place Lebanon under a French mandate for the next 10 years" as of Thursday afternoon.

The petition on the community petition website Avaaz was reportedly set up by Lebanese citizens on Wednesday following the explosion that rocked Beirut on Tuesday, killing over 140 people and injuring more than 5,000.

"Lebanon’s officials have clearly shown a total inability to secure and manage the country," the petition reads. "With a failing system, corruption, terrorism and militia the country has just reached its last breath."

"We believe Lebanon should go back under the French mandate in order to establish a clean and durable governance."

Apparently, those 44,000 people support neo-colonialism.
 
Apparently, those 44,000 people support neo-colonialism.

Here's a thought for you..........about scale.

Lebanon is just over 10,000km2

Or almost exactly the same size as the Golden Horsehoe.

Within that space there are in the vicinity of 2M refugees, Palestinians and Syrians. The overall population is under 7M
 

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