2020 Beirut Explosion
Event Date :
08-04-2020
Location :
Beirut, Lebanon
Report Date :
02-04-2021
Event Category:
Explosion
Report Number:
GEER-070
DOI:
doi:10.18118/G6C96C
Event Latitude:
33.88894
Event Longitude:
35.49442
Team:
| Salah Sadek |
| Mayssa Dabaghi (AUB) |
| Paolo Zimmaro (U. Calabria) |
| Youssef Hashash (UIUC) |
| Tim O'Donnell |
| Jonathan Stewart (UCLA) |
Summary:
DesignSafe Data Link: https://www.designsafe-ci.org/data/browser/public/designsafe.storage.published/PRJ-3030/#details-2734795894589952491-242ac118-0001-012
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We compile perishable data on the effects of the 4 August 2020 explosion on Beirut infrastructure. We emphasize the impacts on the Port of Beirut, where the explosion occurred, and the building stock in the city up to a distance of approximately 4 km. The impacts of the blast in the Beirut Port are documented to the quay walls and surrounding structures. The blast devastated a series of grain silos located as close as 50 m from the blast source, although a row of silos furthest from the blast source remained intact and was tilted towards the west (away from the blast). The blast created a crater up to 4-5 m in depth, a quay wall failure, and an apparent flow slide of poorly compacted silty sand fill material into Basin 3 adjacent to the failed quay wall. In the City of Beirut, the blast produced varying levels of effects on buildings, from full collapse to facade damage at blast distances under 4 km. We document both structural impacts and facade damage (mainly to windows and doors) as derived from structure-specific inspections and interpretation of street view imagery.
File Upload :
| File Title | File Version | File Date | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full Report | 1 | 02-04-2021 |
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The work of the GEER Association, in general, is based upon work supported in part by the National Science Foundation through the Geotechnical Engineering Program under Grant No. CMMI-1266418. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NSF. The GEER Association is made possible by the vision and support of the NSF Geotechnical Engineering Program Directors: Dr. Richard Fragaszy and the late Dr. Cliff Astill. GEER members also donate their time, talent, and resources to collect time-sensitive field observations of the effects of extreme events.
