Chemical disaster in Beirut - 12th August 2020

A huge explosion has hit Beirut in Lebanon. The disaster happened last Tuesday, 5th August.

A fire at the port caused a highly dangerous chemical to explode. There were 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate stored there. The explosion was felt over 240 kilometres away on Cyprus.

It looks like there has been an earthquake. There are more than 300,000 people homeless. A third of these are children. 220 people were killed and 6,000 were injured. The country is receiving support from around the world.

The Lebanese government resigned on Monday, 10th August. The public were furious because the government had let the disaster happen and not promised a full investigation into the explosion.