VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The world was shocked by the devastating explosion that occurred in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, on Tuesday 4 August. At least 78 people died and more than 4,000 were injured in the blast located in the port area.

Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said that there was one Indonesian citizen who was injured but the condition was stable. In Lebanon, there are more than 1400 Indonesian citizens, consisting of the community and extended family of the Indonesian Embassy and Indonesian Military troops, members of the Garuda contingent in the  UN Peace Keeping  Mission..

Meanwhile, Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab said 2,750kg of ammonium nitrate, which is agricultural fertilizer, is suspected to be the cause of the incident. The fertilizer had been stored for years in a warehouse by the sea and triggered a  quite powerful blast.

Lebanon's Head of Public Security, Abbas Ibrahim, said several years ago the  "high explosive material" had actually been secured. The material is stored in a warehouse located a few minutes walk from the nightlife district and shopping centers. Why such a big  explosion occured, the cause is still being investigated. So massive was the incident that the explosion could be heard in neighboring Cyprus .

Of course what happened in Beirut was very alarming. This incident no doubt is a shared lesson that national or even international safety will depend on the element of caution and compliance of all parties to safety protocols and handling of explosive, hazardous materials such as ammonium nitrate.