2700 tons of Ammonium nitrate blow up like an atomic bomb in a Beirut port.

Explosion at the pier in Beirut, Lebanon.

A massive explosion shook Lebanon�s capital of Beirut on Tuesday 4th August; at 6:07 p.m. after a major fire broke out near the city's port, killing at least 78 people and injuring 4,000.

What caused the blast: Initially, there were conflicting reports on what caused the explosion. It was earlier blamed on a major fire at a warehouse for firecrackers near the port.

Lebanon's Prime Minister Hassan Diab later said in a statement that an estimated 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate, an explosive, had been stored at a warehouse for the past six years. Lebanon's general security chief said the substance had been confiscated years ago.

The occurred shockwave from the explosion resulting in the building being severely damaged in a radius of 10 KM., Streets were filled with shattered glass and the building rubble.

The death toll from a massive explosion in the capital Beirut on Tuesday had reached 78, Lebanon's health minister has told the Reuters news agency.

Health Minister Hamad Hassan told Reuters that nearly 4,000 people have also been injured.

�There are many people missing until now. People are asking the emergency department about their loved ones and it is difficult to search at night because there is no electricity. We are facing a real catastrophe and need time to assess the extent of damages,"

The minister earlier said in televised remarks that more than 70 people had been killed.