Beirut: The world has seen the power of nuclear bombs during the explosions in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. But a somewhat similar blast took place on this day a year ago in Lebanon. On 4 August 2020, the explosion in the port located in the Lebanese capital Beirut was one of the most powerful non-nuclear explosions in history.
At that time a large amount of ammonium nitrate was kept at the port of Beirut, due to which this blast happened. In this explosion, 218 people died and more than 7500 people were injured. The blast caused a loss of $15 billion. Lebanese authorities recovered 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate from an abandoned ship, the MV Rhosus. It was kept in a warehouse for six years without any security measures.
At the same time, it was believed that this blast happened due to the fire in the warehouse. However, even today the investigation of this matter is going on. At the same time, half the city was destroyed due to the blast. This blast was so powerful that the sound of the blast was heard in neighboring countries, Turkey, Syria, and Jordan. The blast was caused by ammonium nitrate, which is a combustible substance. It is commonly used in agriculture to make fertilizers and explosives.
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