Beirut deaths near 180, with 30 missing

BEIRUT－The death toll from this month's explosions in Beirut has risen to nearly 180, with an estimated 6,000 people injured and at least 30 missing, the United Nations said on Friday. The update comes after the United States said it would send FBI agents to the Lebanese capital to help in investigations.

The explosions on Aug 4, centered on the city's port, have affected operations at six hospitals, up from an initial three, and damaged more than 20 clinics in the worst-hit parts of Beirut.

Nearly 120 schools, used by 50,000 students, have been damaged. More than 1,000 of nearly 50,000 residential units were severely damaged, the report said.

The World Bank, in a preliminary assessment, said 80 percent of residential buildings and infrastructure was impacted, aside from the destruction to the port. Wastewater systems in central Beirut and an electrical substation in one neighborhood also were severely damaged, it said.

"Beyond the human tragedy, the economic impact of the explosion could be large," the report said, including a decline in trade, economic activities and government revenues.

UN agencies are aiding survivors of the Beirut disaster, delivering medicine, health services, food, water and psychological support, Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said on Thursday.

Mobile health clinics run by the UN's refugee agency are providing medicines and health services to those most in need, and the world body's children's fund is distributing 10,000 tetanus vaccines, 42 emergency kits and emergency drugs to primary healthcare centers in need, he said.

Heritage restoration

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization said on Thursday it will lead an international campaign for the recovery and restoration of Beirut's heritage, citing local officials who said that around 60 historic buildings in the capital were at risk of collapse following the explosions.

Regarding the FBI's role, Lebanese authorities had invited the US law enforcement agency to take part in investigations, and it's one of the ways that Washington can help the country deal with the effects of the disaster, US Undersecretary for Political Affairs David Hale said as he toured the badly damaged Gemayezeh neighborhood.

"The FBI will soon join Lebanese and international investigators at the invitation of the Lebanese in order to help answer questions that I know everyone has about the circumstances that led up to this explosion," said Hale, who arrived in Beirut on Thursday for a three-day visit.

Lebanese officials agreed on Thursday on naming a judicial investigator to lead the probe under the auspices of the Supreme Judicial Council, which handles crimes that infringe on the country's national security, as well as political and state security crimes.

An Israeli expert said on Thursday the main explosion was preceded by a series of blasts, the last of which was combustion of fireworks.

Agencies via Xinhua