- Ammonium Nitrate is blamed for the Beirut’s deadly blast as it kills more than 130 people in the explosion that took place in the Lebanese port city.
- Officials blame the colossal destruction touched off by a pair of explosions along Beirut’s waterfront primarily on a large quantity of ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse.
- Initial investigations of the catastrophe appear to show it was the result of a confluence of ludicrously reckless practices and non-existent concern for safety.
- Lebanese authorities first blamed fireworks stored at the port. But it seemed unlikely firecrackers and sparklers could create a blast of that magnitude.
- The current understanding is that the ammonium nitrate stockpiled ignited, though it is not clear what caused this, and the ensuing blast leveled large swaths of the city.
Recent news published in CNN and Huffington Post tries figure out the cause of the recent tragedy that took place in Beirut killing more than 130 people. The Government is investigating swiftly to find out those responsible for this ruthless incident.
Sorrow and fury
Lebanon’s President and Prime Minister are reflecting the sorrow and fury that now permeates what was once a glorious capital. Prime Minister Hassan Diab vowed, “I will not rest until we find those responsible for what happened, hold them accountable, and impose maximum punishment.”
President Michel Aoun promised, “the most severe punishment.”
Lebanon held in the political knots
It’s not fate causing Lebanon’s tragedy. Perhaps the shared anger over this event can bring the Lebanese together to push back against the incompetent and the greedy, the functionaries, politicians, and outside players, who have hijacked their country and created conditions for the Lebanese people’s never-ending tragedy; admittedly a monumental task.
Trump’s note
The President of the United States, Donald Trump, who appallingly — almost casually — appeared to inject more fuel into the smoldering conspiracies, calling the explosion, a “terrible attack,” and later speculating that it was “a bomb of some kind.”
A better understanding of Ammonium Nitrate and its hazardous nature would get us a clear picture about this explosion.
What is ammonium nitrate?
Ammonium nitrate is a solid pale crystalline synthetic chemical that is typically formed into prills, or small beads, and is commonly used in fertilizer as an oxidizing agent. The prills can also be used in controlled mine explosions.
Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab said that 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate prills were left unsecured in a warehouse for around six years before the incident.
Why is it dangerous?
The chemical is not dangerous when used in fertilizer as intended, but it can be hazardous when large quantities are not handled properly.
Ammonium nitrate doesn’t burn on its own. But it can act as an accelerant because it draws oxygen in to a fire.
It can explode when subjected to high temperatures in a confined space, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Ammonium nitrate dangerous when contaminated
But conditions need to be extreme for such a reaction to occur, Gabriel da Silva, a chemical engineering lecturer at the University of Melbourne, told The Guardian.
Ammonium nitrate is particularly dangerous when it has been contaminated with other materials that are flammable on their own, which may have been the case in Beirut.
Disasters caused by ammonium nitrate
- In 2015 disaster struck a Chinese factory and killed 170 people, after a highly flammable chemical was improperly stored near other chemicals, including ammonium nitrate.
- In 1947, a ship filled with more than 2,000 tons of the chemical accidentally detonated at a Texas port and killed nearly 600 people.
- In 1921, about 4,500 tons of chemicals, including ammonium nitrate, exploded at a plant in Germany, killing more than 500.
- Timothy McVeigh used the substance in the 5,000-pound truck bomb he detonated in April 1995 outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people.
- Ammonium nitrate has also been used to make bombs.
Why was it being stored improperly in Beirut?
That’s still under investigation.
Lebanon’s government placed an unknown number of port officers under house arrest, The Associated Press reported.
The country saw widespread anti-government demonstrations set off by a worsening economic crisis even before the coronavirus crisis hit.
What about that reddish-orange cloud of gas?
That gas may be nitrogen oxides, which are produced by ammonium nitrate and are also associated with air pollution. They can irritate the respiratory system unless dissipated by wind.
Such clouds are commonly associated with large blasts of any kind, Jeffrey Lewis, a weapons expert at California’s Middlebury Institute of International Studies, told The Washington Post.
Lebanon needs urgent, lasting help, but even receiving outside help will be extraordinarily complicated given the political knots that are strangling the country.
Did you subscribe to our daily newsletter?
It’s Free! Click here to Subscribe!
Source:CNN & Huffinton Post
