Lebanon’s army finds 1.3 tons of fireworks near Beirut explosion site

Lebanon’s army said it had found 1.3 tons of fireworks during a search of Beirut port, which was devastated last month in a massive explosion blamed on highly explosive ammonium nitrate, kept in poor condition.

The army said in a statement that 1,320 kgs of fireworks were found in 120 boxes in a warehouse during a search of the port. It said army engineers disposed of them.

The port and a large part of central Beirut was ruined by the huge blast that killed at least 190 people and left tens of thousands homeless. 

Warehouses and concrete grain silos at the port were also destroyed.

“As part of the inspection works that army units are carrying out at Beirut port, 1,320 kilograms of fireworks were found packed in 120 cartons at one of the hangars,” the army statement said.

“Troops from the Engineering Regiment immediately removed them and disposed of them at fields belonging to the army,” the statement added.

According to Lebanese media reports, an FBI team has reportedly deduced that a fireworks cache was behind the August 4 detonation of the ammonium nitrate that had been stored at the port. 

Other flammable substances had also reportedly been placed in the same storage facility.