BEIRUT, August 9. /TASS/: The task force of the Russian Emergencies Ministry completed the search and rescue effort at the blast scene in the port of Lebanon's capital Beirut, the crisis center told TASS on Sunday.
"The search and rescue works in Beirut are over," the crisis center reported, adding that the emergency relief effort was ongoing.
The Lebanese authorities don’t hope anymore to find alive people under the rubble following the blast, it said. "The representatives of Lebanon’s Defense Ministry as the receiving party officially stated that they don’t expect anymore to find anyone alive under the rubble," a spokesperson said.
The Russian rescuers arrived in Beirut on August 5 to provide assistance to those injured by the blast at the port and take part in the search and rescue operation. The Russian specialists set up a mobile hospital at the stadium. Doctors from the Centrospas unit of the Russian Emergencies Ministry provided assistance to 92 injured people, including 12 children. During the entire effort the rescuers discovered and pulled six bodies from the rubble.
On August 4, a powerful blast ripped through Beirut’s port located near the Lebanese naval base and generated a shockwave, which either destroyed or damaged dozens of buildings. More than 300,000 people have been left homeless. At least 154 people were killed and nearly 5,000 others were injured, while dozens went missing.
According to Lebanon’s Interior Ministry, a fire was started by welding work and caused the detonation of more than 2,700 tonnes of ammonium nitrate, which had been seized by the customs service and stored in the port for six years. A two-week state of emergency is in place in Lebanon’s capital, which was declared a disaster-stricken city.
