After blast, Lebanon experiencing surge in virus cases

Lebanon is facing a surge in coronavirus cases after a devastating blast at the Beirut port earlier this month killed scores and wounded thousands, prompting medical officials to urge for a two-week lockdown to try to contain the pandemic.

Virus numbers were expected to rise following the August 4 explosion of nearly 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate stored at the port. Around 180 people were killed, more than 6,000 wounded and a quarter of a million left with homes unfit to live in. The blast overwhelmed the city’s hospitals and also badly damaged two that had a key role in handling virus cases.

Ahead of the surge, medical officials had warned of the dangers of crowding at hospitals in the aftermath of the explosion, at funerals or as people searched through the rubble. Protests and demonstrations also broke out after the blast as Lebanese vented their anger at the ruling class and decades-long mismanagement.

On Sunday, Lebanon registered 439 new virus cases and six fatalities. The new infections bring to 8,881 the total number of cases in the small country of just over 5 million, where COVID-19 has killed some 103 people.

Health Minister Hamad Hassan warns the true number could be far higher. Following a meeting Monday with medical officials who demanded another two-week lockdown, he urges everyone wear a mask, saying the virus has now spread in every city and almost every village in Lebanon.

“It is a matter of life and death,” Hassan says, adding that soon private and public hospitals might not be able to take more patients.

— AP