You may have heard of what happened in Lebanon today and if not, basically, there was a big explosion in Beirut that affected many cities, destroyed shops, homes, cars, caused many injuries and deaths. The cause is uncertain.
As a fellow lebanese myself (that also lives there), today was absolutely terrifying, probably the scariest moments of my life. We heard a deafening sound as the floors were shaking. Some of us thought it was an attack, others thought it was an earthquake. As soon as it ended many expected a second one, which luckily never happened.
Here's a video of what happened that was sent to me, there are also many others that you can find online.
Windows were broken, doors wrecked, cars flipped over, buildings collapsed, people hit by flying or falling objects, and unfortunately, many didn't make it out alive.
We were one of the lucky ones, our families and friends were all safe and our homes were fine.
Some people couldn't even get out of the crumbling builings, so we saw corpses being pulled out, although some people survived the crash. But wherever we looked, there was blood, poeple were half covered in it, their shirts, pants, hair, everything. And that sight was traumatizing.
We watched the news with elders severely injured, children with blood-spattered shirts and people in pain that couldn't get in the hospitals because they were full.
Some people are missing. Just try to imagine the pain and fear their families and friends are feeling.
Articles about what happened, there are a lot more
Officials expect death toll to rise after huge blast rips through Lebanon's capital.
The explosion took place at the port shortly before 19:00 local time (18:00 CET) with a large cloud of smoke billowing over the city. Eyewit
Not only are we in the middle of a pandemic, but Lebanon is also going through a very serious economical crisis. To give you an example, before, $1 equaled 1 500 lebanese pounds. Nowadays, $1 equals more than 7 000 lebanese pounds. Not to mention that we obviously don't have any dollars at disposition, so yeah we're fucked.
People are hungry, homeless, unemployed. And even if they are getting paid, it'll be useless since the prices of everything went up because they were affected by the economical fiasco.
Important additional information
Today, I heard my 7 year old cousins scream in fear that they were going to die. I saw my aunt shaking, worried that her children won't survive. I saw my dad freak out while trying to reassure us when we both knew that we were uncertain about the next minutes of our lives. I heard the panic in the trembling voices of my family and friends as they couldn't believe what had just happened. I thought my loved ones and I were going to die in the next seconds.
I'm never forgetting those moments and feelings.
I don't think signing petitions will help, i don't even know if the following links will help either, I just know Lebanon and it's people are desperate for anything because the future of this country is extremely uncertain.
https://helplebanonnow.carrd.co/
How can you help?
https://lebanoncrisis.carrd.co/
Lebanon Needs You More Than Ever. Know more about the crisis in Lebanon, sign petitions, donate or explore volunteering opportunities.
Help families, domestic workers, and refugees in Lebanon with food and other basic needs during this economic and public health crisis
I think donating to the red cross would be the most helpful, so if you are considering it, it'd be great.
There are so many great threads on twitter about what you can do to help, just search help lebanon or something to find them. Also if you can, please donate, and as I said, the lebanese pound is pretty much worthless currently so USD is way more useful to us.
In the last four days, a lot of you might have seen the video of Mr. Philip Banks catching a baby boy that was thrown out of a burning building - the baby was saved by both him and the mother who sacrificed herself to help save her kids. In the video, you can hear neighbors pleading with her to jump down herself, but she didn't. She was completely engulfed in flames by the time she went back in to try and save her daughter. There are three heroes in this story, and all three of them are angels, one in Heaven now, and the other two here on Earth. Mr. D'Artagnan Alexander is the name of the neighbor of the Longs who kicked in the door of their apartment, went inside the fire and saved the little girl, who the mother managed to carry as close to the exit as possible before succumbing to her horrific injuries. The final sacrifice of a loving mother and the selflessness and bravery of these two amazing men are incredible. Words aren't enough.
Both of the children made it, but sadly it was too late for Mrs. Rachel Long. She leaves behind a little girl that will need more surgeries to start her recovery, a baby boy that is getting better but is extremely traumatized, and a husband who is now heartbroken and left homeless with their two children.
I implore you, if you cannot donate yourselves, I completely understand, but please at least share the donation link, that helps too!
Mr. Phillip Banks is a true hero. The way he sprinted to catch the little boy, throwing himself with everything he got to save him - without a doubt, the boy would have been severely more injured or gone if it wasn't for him. Mr. D'Artagnan Alexandar is another true hero. That little girl would not have made it without him. He ran inside a burning apartment, risked his life, all to save a child and he tried saving the mother too, but she was already impossible. Can't imagine how traumatic all of that is for the two of them as well, and for all the neighbors and family members affected. A lot of people helped in this tragic situation.
And Mrs. Rachel Long? I can't even begin to describe how horrifying it is what she had to do to save her children, and how brave she was in her final moments. She was such a strong woman and amazing mother. No one should ever have to go through that. How do you recover from something like this? It seems impossible. She and her family are in my thoughts and prayers.
On July 3rd, 2020, Rachel Long, daughter of James (Jessica) Wood and Trisha Wood, wa… Cindy Traywick Rogers needs your support for Support f
**UPDATE MESSAGE** 6/3/2020 - Please note that THIS is the only legal Gi… Tiffany Lee needs your support for OFFICIAL Gianna Floyd Fund (George Floyd's child)
if you can, share or donate to the official fund for george floyd’s 6 year old daughter. it was organized by the family’s legal team and shared by his best friend, so it’s legitimate. the least we can do is make sure his baby is set for life.
I was running around Gotham City with the Dolan twins because the mafia was chasing us and we ended up seeing a really fancy car and hiding in it and when the mob saw the car, they suggested that they search it but the leader said, “Why would they hide in a very nice car, you dumbos?” And everyone just nodded their heads in agreement and went about running.
Okay, I’m sorry but I just feel so restless about the bushfires, I made a mini-comic. Maybe it will get a few more people to donate. I wish I could do more. Please see http://wires.org.au if you want to help. :(
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