A massive explosion shook Lebanon's capital Beirut on Tuesday, wounding at least 3,000 and killing at least 50 people. At the same time, it also damaged building across the capital and sending a giant mushroom cloud into the sky.
The cause of the explosion remains unclear. The Lebanese Red Cross tweeted that more than 30 teams were responding to the scene of the blast via ambulances. There are reports of broken windows and damage from the shock wave from over six miles away.
Abbas Ibrahim, chief of Lebanese General Security, said the explosion might have been caused by highly explosive material that was confiscated from a ship some time ago and stored at the port. Local television channel LBC said the material was sodium nitrate.
According to DailyMail
A massive explosion in the Lebanese capital of Beirut has killed at least 50 people, left thousands more injured and wreaked devastation on the city.
The country's health minister said more than 3,000 have been wounded following the blast at the city's industrial port, where warehouses are believed to contain explosive materials.
Dramatic footage from around 6pm local time shows smoke billowing from the waterfront area shortly before an enormous fireball explodes into the sky and blankets the city in a thick mushroom cloud.
Witnesses have stressed the sheer enormity of the blast, which was heard 125 miles away in Cyprus, and likened it to a 'nuclear bomb'.
It obliterated the immediate surrounding buildings, where firefighters were still battling flames this evening, and even inflicted damage on districts miles away from the blast site.
General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim said: 'It appears that there is a warehouse containing material that was confiscated years ago, and it appears that it was highly explosive material.'
