Drone images reveal 'hell' like landscape of destroyed city
Powerful aerial footage show the full extent of the damage to Beirut after a massive explosion rocked the Lebanon capital.
State media reports there are at least 135 dead and about 5000 injured after the explosion on Tuesday (local time) - believed to have been caused by tonnes of hazardous fertiliser material.
The drone images showed a scene more like a war zone: deep craters across the ground, the rubble of destroyed buildings and smoke rising across the city.
INTERACTIVE: Before-and-after satellite images
Beirut now resembles a war zone after the massive explosion. CNN
There are believed to be 300,000 residents made homeless after the disaster. CNN
Tower blocks that did survive the explosion have been left with their windows blown out. Glass and debris cover the streets.
Some people are believed to still be trapped beneath the rubble.
Witnesses reported homes as far as 10km from the blast site were damaged.
The destruction stretches for kilometres from the epicentre of the blast at the port area to the city's airport.
The explosion ignited at the port district in the city. CNN
Beirut Governor Marwan Abboud told Saudi-owned TV station Al-Hadath, adding that nearly 3000 people are homeless.
Losses from the blast are estimated to be up to to US$15 billion ($20 billion).
"Beirut as we know it is gone and people won't be able to rebuild their lives," said Amy, a woman who swept glass from a small alley beside by a tall building.
The levelled city of Beirut has been likened to 'hell' by one resident. CNN
"This is hell. How are they (people) going to survive. What are they going to do?" she said, blaming officials for lack of responsibility and "stupidity."
Hospitals were overwhelmed by the injured. One that was damaged in the blast had to evacuate all its patients to a nearby field for treatment.
It was the worst single explosion to strike Lebanon, a country whose history is filled with destruction — from a 1975-1990 civil war, conflicts with Israel and periodic terrorist attacks.
- With AP
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