Beirut port fire revives trauma ahead of blast anniversary

A fire smouldering for days at Beirut port has revived painful memories of the explosion that devastated the Lebanese capital in 2020, with the government struggling to find a way to extinguish it as the second anniversary of the blast approaches, Reuters reports.

The fire has been burning slowly in the ruins of the port's grain silos, giving off an orange glow visible at night from neighbourhoods that were most badly damaged by the 4 August, 2020 chemical explosion that killed more than 215 people.

The authorities say it is the result of summer heat igniting fermenting grain left in the silos since the blast, one of the most powerful non-nuclear explosions ever recorded.

The explosion was widely seen in Lebanon as a symbol of corruption and bad governance by a ruling elite that has also steered the country into a devastating economic meltdown.

"My heart is burning when I see the fire at the port," said Mona Jawish, whose daughter was killed in the blast.

To know more: https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220715-beirut-port-fire-revives-trauma-ahead-of-blast-anniversary/