As we all know the country of Lebanon has been going through an economical crisis that has pushed tens of thousands people into poverty and triggered large anti-government protests, as well as a political crisis following the devastating explosion in Beirut on August 4 2020 that killed at least 200 people and injured about 5,000 others.
Well… that wasn’t the end of it, a warehouse where fuel was illegally stored has exploded in northern Lebanon early Sunday , killing 20 people and wounding dozens more with severe burns.It was not immediately clear what caused the blast.
The Lebanese Red Cross said its teams recovered 20 bodies from the site in the border village of Tleil . In a statement, it said At least 79 people were injured and were being taken to local hospitals.They tweeted : « Major Incident: 22 teams from the #Lebanese_Red_Cross are responding to an explosion of a fuel tanker in #Akkar. Our teams are working on transporting the wounded and the dead bodies to hospitals in the area. »
A military and a security source told a news agency that the explosion took place as the Lebanese army was distributing gasoline from a hidden fuel storage tanker it had confiscated.
The official National News Agency said the explosion took place following arguments between “residents that gathered around the tank to fill up gasoline”.
It said the army had left the area before the fight and the explosion.
Witnesses said about 200 people were nearby at the time of the explosion.
The blast comes as Lebanon faces a severe fuel shortage that has been blamed on smuggling, hoarding and the government’s inability to secure deliveries of imported fuel.
The shortages have paralyzed the country dependent on private generators to light up their homes. Most of those generators have now turned off their engines because of the crippling diesel shortages. The American University Medical Center, one of Lebanon’s largest private hospitals, on Saturday put out an urgent appeal for fuel and warned it may be forced to shut down in less than 48 hours due to fuel shortages, which would threaten the lives of its critically ill patients.
The explosion on Sunday was the deadliest in the country since the blast at Beirut’s port.
Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri drew a link between the Akkar and Beirut explosions in a statement shared on Twitter.
“The Akkar massacre is not different from the port massacre,” he said.
Ways you can help:
-Raise awareness , speak up, dont stop posting about this, share about this matter on your platforms.
-Donate to Lebanese NGOs , but be careful , make sure they are reliable and safe.
-Raise funds for Beirut
-Express your support by getting in touch with people from Beirut, make them feel seen and heard.
These places are offering free support
– Shower, Dry your hair, Iron: @wenailit
-Medicine: @medsforlebanon @medsforleb @medonations @pilldonorslb @Lebanonneeds
-Mental health: @embrace @maybellsofficial
-Electricity, Internet, Cooling down: @mayrig @aaliyasbooks @moodspub @blackeye.coffeeshop @nipponsushi_lb @Caspersandgambini @thedukebeirut @sputnik_v.lb @funjan_qahwa_ @haventhecabin @kaleicoffee.co