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Four people killed and 30 injured after fuel tank explodes in Beirut

Three pictures of a diesel tank explosion in a bakery in Beirut, Lebanon on October 9, 2020
Beirut is still coming to terms with the huge explosion in August (Picture: REX/Reuters)

A diesel tank exploded inside a building in Beirut last night, killing at least four people and injuring more than 30.

It was not immediately clear what triggered the blast in the basement of a bakery, which was reportedly heard across the Lebanese capital.

Firefighters quickly put out the blaze and later helped building residents stuck in their apartments by the fire to climb down ladders.

Lebanese troops were also deployed to the western neighborhood of Tariq Jadidah and pushed back onlookers.

A Beirut TV station said more than 30 people were hurt and a medical source said three children were in hospital being treated for burns.

The Red Cross said at least one person was critically wounded while several others were treated for smoke inhalation.

Civil defense members work on the scene of a warehouse explosion in Tariq El Jdide neighborhood in Beirut, Lebanon, Oct. 9, 2020. Two people were dead and more than 20 others injured in an explosion at a warehouse in Lebanon's capital Beirut on Friday night, al-Jadeed TV channel reported.
It is not known what triggered last night’s explosion in the basement of a bakery (Picture: REX)
Rescuers carry a child that was evacuated from a building after a fuel tank exploded in the al-Tariq al-Jadida neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon October 9, 2020.
Rescuers carry a child who was evacuated from a nearby building (Picture: Reuters)
Firefighters extinguish a fire at a building after a fuel tank exploded in Beirut's Tariq al-Jdide neighbourhood on October 9, 2020. - A fuel tank explosion sparked fire and caused casualties in the Lebanese capital Beirut which sparked panic in a city already ravaged by last month's monster blast, rescuers said.
Four people have been killed and 30 injured, according to Lebanese media (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)

The explosion came two months after a massive blast at Beirut’s port killed nearly 200 people, injured about 6,500 and caused billions of dollars worth of damage.

Nearly 3,000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate, a highly explosive chemical used in fertilisers, exploded on August 4, sending shockwaves throughout the city.

It is still not known what ignited the material, which had been stored at the facility for six years.

More than two dozen people, many of them port and customs officials have been detained since the blast, which experts describe as one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions in history.

People are evacuated by Firefighters from their apartments after a gas tank exploded in neighborhood of Tarik al-Jadida, in Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Oct. 9, 2020.
Firefighters evacuated people from their apartments in the densley populated area (Picture: AP)
Civil defense members try to put out the fire caused by a warehouse explosion in Tariq El Jdide neighborhood in Beirut, Lebanon, Oct. 9, 2020. Two people were dead and more than 20 others injured in an explosion at a warehouse in Lebanon's capital Beirut on Friday night, al-Jadeed TV channel reported.
Several people were taken to hospital for smoke inhalation (Picture: REX)
Members of Lebanese Civil Defence and firefighters evacuate a wounded woman from her apartment after a fuel tank exploded in Beirut's Tariq al-Jdide neighbourhood on October 9, 2020. - A fuel tank explosion sparked fire and caused casualties in the Lebanese capital Beirut which sparked panic in a city already ravaged by last month's monster blast, rescuers said.
The Lebanese Civil Defence and firefighters evacuate a wounded woman (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)

In other parts of Lebanon, wildfires erupted in forests amid a heatwave hitting the Mediterranean country.

Some of the fires broke out in villages along the border with Israel. The state-run news agency said a mine exploded in the Wazzani area because of the fire. There were no casualties.

In neighbouring Syria, wildfires have killed two people and caused breathing problems for about 20 others in the coastal province of Latakia, the health ministry said.

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