59 Containers of Highly Dangerous Substances Removed from Beirut Port

59 Containers of Highly Dangerous Substances Removed from Beirut Port

Fifty-nine containers of highly dangerous substances were cleared Wednesday from the disaster-hit Beirut port, nine months after the explosion of hundreds of tons of poorly stored ammonium nitrate at the facility caused a deadly and unprecedented peacetime catastrophe in Lebanon.

“Following a strenuous follow-up by caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab for more than eight months, fifty-nine containers of highly dangerous substances found at Beirut port and other places after the Aug. 4 blast disaster were exported today,” the Premiership said in a statement.

“German firm Combi Lift worked on sealing these containers in a safe manner over the past months, in line with the contract signed with the company to remove this danger from Lebanon,” the statement added.

The last of the 59 containers was lifted onto the ship on Friday.

Heiko Felderhoff, CEO of Combi Lift, said they would be disposed of in Germany.

Elias Assouad, the head of the Lebanese-German Business Council, said the project had cleared the port of "all toxic, cancerous, flammable and highly reactive chemicals that have been stored here for decades."

The German firm had been expected "to deal with only 49 containers of hazardous material," he said.

But they ended up "handling more than 75, of which 59 will be