BREAKING: Lebanese Prime Minister says #Beirut explosions caused by an estimated 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate left unsecured for 6 years in a warehouse. He vows to punish officials responsible. 50+ dead, 3,000 injured, hospitals overwhelmed.
So senseless … the way those materials were stored is a well known high-risk situation. People complain a lot about OSHA rules and paperwork, but this is one example where the rules and reporting in the US do actually work to reduce risk for workers and the general publiic. Throwing in the political volatility in the region makes it even worse (not a comment on how this was triggered, just saying there was additional risk in that it could be targeted by bad actors).