Diver Captures Moment of Beirut Blast From Boat
A diver in the port of Beirut captured the massive August 4 explosion from the vantage point of the water.
Alaa Saad was sitting on a boat with his friends after diving when they noticed smoke rising from the port. It was minutes before the massive explosion hit the capital, killing at least 220 and injuring more than 6,000 people.
Saad told Storyful that he and his friends hadn’t paid much attention to it at first. “As soon as I saw the explosion, I never thought it would be one that’d destroy Beirut. I thought it was a show or a festival because I had never imagined that this kind of explosion would occur in my city,” he said.
But the sound that was heard moments later convinced them otherwise. “No video will have captured the magnitude of the sound of the explosion … We were in a state of terror, a state of fear,” Saad said.
According to Reuters, Lebanon’s prime minister and president were warned by security officials about the presence of 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate at Beirut’s port.
The explosion destroyed 6,000 buildings, reports said.
On August 10, Lebanon’s government resigned amid increasing anger by protesters following the blast. Credit: Alaa H. Saad via Storyful
