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At least 180 people were killed in the massive explosion on August 4.
Rescue teams in Beirut continued for a second day searching for a possible survivor in the rubble of the city, a month after the massive explosion that washed away the port of the Lebanese capital. Rescuers were alerted to the building when their accompanying dog, Flash, directed them towards it. The dog is trained to detect humans.
Local reports suggested that a team of Chilean rescuers had detected a “heartbeat” as they passed through buildings devastated by the blast on Thursday night. So far, no body has been discovered, however the technology used is only designed to capture the beating of the human heart.
“From what I can understand from my Chilean colleagues, the search area is quite narrow. It is like five by five meters [approximately 16 by 16 feet]; it is not very deep because we are working just above the vault on the ground floor, ”said a French rescue worker identified as Emmanuel, who was helping the Chilean team. “So what we’re looking for right now is probably a person.”
But civil defense workers at the scene said the chances of finding someone alive were remote. “But even if there is less than 1% hope, we must keep looking,” said a rescuer.
The search comes as the city continues to recover from the massive explosion of more than 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate, stored in the port of Beirut for six years, on August 4. At least 180 people were killed in the blast, thousands more were injured and 300,000 were left homeless. The precise cause of the explosion is being investigated, although ammonium nitrate itself requires a lot of energy to ignite.
Protests after the blast swept the capital, with many blaming a culture of corruption at the top of Lebanese politics. The entire government recently offered their resignations. Lebanon’s ambassador to Germany, Mustafa Adib, has been invited to form a new government.
Leena Saidi of ABC News contributed to this report.
