The death toll from a massive explosion that rocked Beirut on Tuesday has reached 110, the Head of the Lebanese Red Cross told local broadcasters on Wednesday.
George Kettaneh told LBCI TV by telephone that the Red Cross was coordinating with the health ministry for morgues to take victims because hospitals were overwhelmed, the agency added.
Prime Minister Hassan Diab said that about 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate which was stored in the Beirut port warehouse caused the massive blast.
The United Nations assured that it is “actively assisting” in response to the horrific explosions that ripped through the port area of Beirut. Some UN naval peacekeepers were among the thousands wounded.
A statement from a UN spokesperson said that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his deepest condolences to the families of the victims, as well as to the people and Government of Lebanon, following the horrific explosions in the capital.
The UN chief wished a speedy recovery to the injured, which includes several UN personnel working in Lebanon.
According to the news reports, along with a hundred deaths, about 4,000 people were also injured in the massive blasts, which sent shockwaves across the bustling city of Beirut, bursting out windows and shaking buildings.
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“The United Nations remains committed to supporting Lebanon at this difficult time and is actively assisting in the response to this incident,” Guterres said.
Using social media, hundreds of Lebanese have offered shelter to strangers displaced by a devastating blast, which Beirut’s governor said may have left 2,50,000 people homeless.
Tuesday evening’s explosion in port warehouses storing explosive material was the most powerful ever to rip through the capital, tearing the facades off buildings and overturning cars.
Using the hashtag #OurHomesAreOpen in Arabic and English, social media users have freely offered up spare beds and empty properties to victims, providing their names, phone numbers, and details on the size and location of the accommodation.
Declaring solidarity with Lebanon, the UAE dispatched emergency medical assistance to help healthcare facilities treat victims of the massive explosions in Beirut. The assistance includes medicines and medical supplies.
Jordanian Monarch, King Abdullah, has given instructions to the Jordanian Army to prepare a military field hospital to be dispatched to Lebanon.
The hospital, which will be dispatched Thursday and will be fully equipped for conducting surgery, will include all medical specialties to serve the people of Lebanon and mitigate the burden on Lebanese medical facilities.
It will include 48 beds, 10 ICU beds, two operating rooms, and an X-ray lab, with 160 staff members.
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