Video Producer: Shohini Bose
Video Editor: Sandeep Suman
More than a month after a massive blast rocked the Beirut port area in Lebanon, a fire sending up a large column of black smoke into the sky was seen at the port on Thursday, 10 September.
No injuries were reported.
The Cause?
The cause of the blaze is reportedly still unclear. The military police has begun a probe into the incident, reported BBP, citing the Lebanese army.
According to BBC, the fire broke out where an aid agency had been storing food and cooking oil.
Lebanon has reportedly launched a probe into the huge fire at the warehouse that is used for storing aid.
While some reports suggest that the fire was caused by burning tyres and oil, on being asked about the same, police spokesperson, Col Joseph Msalam told AP:
“I don’t know. It could be containers. I really don’t know what is there.”
What Reports Suggest
The head of Lebanon's Red Cross, George Kettaneh, informed BBC that some people were suffering from shortness of breath, but there were no reported injuries.
Red Cross Regional Director Fabrizio Carboni, hoqwever, said that the warehouse, where the incident took place, was stacked with thousands of food parcels.
Therefore, the humanitarian operation being run out of there stands at risk of serious disruption.
According to BBC, the area around the fire was cordoned off to prevent it from spreading further.
By the evening, most flames had been extinguished, reported BBC, citing officials.
Netizens React
Several took to social media to share images and videos of the fire.
Background
The incident comes over a month after a large amount of ammonium nitrate stored at the port exploded, killing nearly 200 people. Some residents, still traumatised by that explosion, drove out of the city on Thursday.
(With inputs from BBC.)
(This is a developing story and will be updated with more details shortly)
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