Section of Beirut grain silos damaged in 2020 Lebanon explosion collapses

The northern section of a previously damaged set of grain silos in Beirut collapsed Tuesday after a fire slowly burned in the block for weeks when grains trapped inside ignited.

The silos were first damaged in August 2020 when a nearby port warehouse storing ammonium nitrate fertilizer exploded in a blast that killed over 200 people, wounded 7,000 and destroyed 77,000 apartments. 

LEBANON, MIRED IN CRISES, MARKS 1 YEAR SINCE HORRIFIC BEIRUT BLAST

The Tuesday collapse created a cloud of dust over the port city and took down eight other damaged silos in the site’s northern block.

The silo’s norther section had been slowly tipping over since the first explosion two years ago, but the severity of the site’s deterioration began to accelerate after it caught fire last month.

Tuesday’s collapse comes just weeks after one section of the silos fell on July 31 followed by an additional collapse on the second anniversary of the blast on Aug. 4.

LEBANON’S LEADERS WERE WARNED IN JULY THAT EXPLOSIVES ‘COULD DESTROY’ BEIRUT, REPORT SAYS

No one is believed to have been hurt in the latest collapse as the site has long been evacuated.

In August, the United Nations said family members of victims killed in the blast “still await justice” and called for an international investigation into the deadly event. 

“This tragedy marked one of the largest non-nuclear blasts in recent memory, yet the world has done nothing to find out why it happened,” the UN human rights office said in a statement.  

 

The Lebanese government ordered the destruction of the remaining damaged silos in April, but the decision was suspended after victim’s family members protested the move and argued the silos could contain useful information for an investigation. 

Others have called for the silos to remain as a memorial to those lost in the deadly 2020 blast. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.