Large fire erupts in Beirut port area, a month after massive blast

A large fire erupted on Thursday at Beirut's port, sending a huge column of smoke above the city a little more than a month after a massive deadly blast devastated the port and surrounding residential area of the Lebanese capital.

The blaze ignited in the shattered duty-free zone of the port and one official said it was limited to that area. But it jangled nerves in a nation grappling with a deep economic crisis that has posed the biggest threat to Lebanon's stability since its 1975-1990 civil war.

A military source said it appeared to have started when cooking oil caught fire and spread to stores of tires. At one point, live television footage had shown flames licking up near a pile of tires in a warehouse ruined by last month's explosion.

The army said it was not immediately clear why the oil and tires had erupted in flames and said it was sending helicopters to help bring the fire under control. Television footage showed a helicopter dropping water on the blaze.

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The port of Beirut was the scene of the second major fire in a month, as a store of tires and oil burst into flames, according to a military source.

The head of civil defence told Lebanon's AlJadeed television it was not certain what materials were burning. But he urged residents to stay calm, saying the fire was contained to one place.

"For sure we were scared. It's only been a month since the explosion that destroyed Beirut. We saw the same thing happening again," said Andre Muarbes, 53.

There were no immediate reports of injuries, but some residents drove out of the city, still traumatized by the Aug. 4 blast that killed about 190 people.

Michel Najjar, public works minister in the outgoing government, which resigned in the wake of the blast, told Lebanon's MTV the fire had been brought under control, saying initial indications suggested the blaze was sparked by repair work at the port.

Majed Hassanein, 49, was taking his wife and two children out of the capital by car.

"I am forced to get them out of Beirut from the smoke and the fire that is happening at the port again."

He said his son was still suffering shock from the blast that ruined a swathe of the capital near the port, leaving about 300,000 people without habitable homes and shattering windows across the city.The Aug. 4 blast was caused by a huge store of ammonium nitrate that had been kept at the port in poor condition for years.

George Kettaneh, head of Lebanon's Red Cross,said there was no fear of another explosion as a result of the flames and said there were no injuries, although he saidsome people were suffering shortness of breath.

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The public prosecutor ordered an immediate investigation. Many Lebanese are frustrated that they have not been told about any initial findings from an investigation into the port blast, more than a month after it ripped through Beirut.

Carmen Geha, an activist and associate professor at the American University of Beirut, said the fire was further proof of mismanagement by a ruling elite, who have dragged the nation into crisis after years of corruption and poor governance.

"It's a gross crime, gross negligence and gross arrogance," she said. "You can't trust them to manage anything."