Engineers call for Beirut grain silos hit by port explosion to be torn down
Part of the grain silos that absorbed much of the Beirut port blast must be demolished to avoid collapse, a Swiss engineering company said.
Amann Engineering, which offered laser-scanning assistance to Lebanon after the explosion last August, said the section that suffered the most damage was an “unstable, moving structure”.
“Our recommendation is to proceed with the deconstruction of this block,” the company said in a report published on Monday.
“As it becomes more obvious the concrete piles have been heavily damaged … new silos will have to be built at a different location.”
Lebanon’s Economy Minister Raoul Nehme said in November that the country would demolish its largest grain store because of public safety concerns, but authorities have not yet taken action.
The 48-metre structure has become a symbol of the catastrophic blast that killed more than 200 people and damaged large areas of the Lebanese capital.
Authorities said the blast was caused when ammonium nitrate fertiliser that had been stored at the port for years caught fire.
The silos absorbed much of the blast, shielding large parts of western Beirut.
“As much as the structure can be iconic, facts do show there is no way to ensure safety on even the medium term with the north block remaining as is,” Amann said.
It said that the damage to some of the silos was so severe that the structure was tilting.
“The inclination proceeds at the rate of 2 millimetres per day, which is a lot structurally speaking,” it said.
“By comparison, the Tower of Pisa in Italy was leaning about 5 millimetres per year until it was stabilised by very special works.”
Lebanon imports 85 per cent of its food and confirmation that the silos cannot be salvaged puts the country’s food security under threat.
Lebanon received donations of grain and flour after the explosion.