The massive blast in Beirut has amassed a horrible number of casualties and displaced countless people whose houses were destroyed or damaged by the incident.
“I think that there are between 250,000 and 300,000 people who are now without homes,” Governor of Beirut Marwan Abboud told AFP on Wednesday.
“The losses are enormous. We estimate direct and indirect losses in excess of 10 or even 15 billion dollars,” Abboud later revealed, raising the previously estimated figures from the initial $3-$5 billion.
The announcement of the final estimate will follow the official assessment by the engineers and technical teams tasked with determining the scale of the losses.
While the Port of Beirut is out of service as a result of the severe damage it sustained from the blast, the majority of the buildings in its vicinity have been totaled.
The buildings in the capital that were not reduced to rubble were not safe from the devastating shockwave, however. Glass was shattered and furniture got destroyed, adding to the high cost of the catastrophe.
The Grand Serail and the Parliament were also impacted, with the latter sustaining heavy damage, according to its secretary-general, Adnan Daher.
Until the Beirut Port recovers, the Port of Tripoli, potentially along with other ports in South Lebanon, will be used as a temporary replacement for trade operations.
The United Kingdom announced that it will be dispatching its royal navy ship to help rebuild the destroyed port, in addition to $6.6M in humanitarian aid and other vital help, like rescue teams.
The world is allocating great support to the Lebanese people, sending medical equipment and aid, as well as rescue teams, to help them pull through the agony brought by this national disaster.
The961 Foundation is raising funds for the Lebanese Red Cross to help them in their response to this tragic incident. To donate, click here.