2 Filipinos Dead, 2 Still Missing, 18 Injured in Beirut Explosion

• The Department of Foreign Affairs stated that two Filipinos are dead, and two are still missing following the Beirut explosion on Tuesday.
• A total of 18 sustained injuries from the blast, 10 of whom are seafarers.
• The DFA is working on repatriating about 230 Filipinos over the weekend.

Two Filipino citizens are still missing after the catastrophic Beirut explosion that killed almost a hundred people on Tuesday. One of the two aforementioned is a seafarer while the other is a household worker.

The Department of Foreign Affairs stated that the seafarer is one of the 11 sailors who went missing after the explosion.

Undersecretary Sarah Arriola said they jumped into the water as the poweful blast sent a massive shockwave across the area. Apparently, their ship, cruise liner MV Orient Queen, was only 400 meters away from the blast site.

2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate blew up in Beirut’s port area, sending a violent shockwave in the entire vicinity.

The Philippine Embassy in Beirut announced that 10 of the sailors have been found. They only sustained minor injuries and are now staying at Abu Merhi Cruises at Ain el Mraiseh.

Still, two Filipinos died from the horrifying incident.

According to DFA spokesperson Ed Meñez, both victims were also household service workers. They were at their employer’s home when the explosion occurred.

Hans Leo Cadac of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) informed the relatives of the deceased that the government will repatriate their remains. However, they are still verifying the identitiy of the other casualty.

According to Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, the other victim’s passport may have been lost in a fire following the explosion. They only know of the deceased person’s surname.

Meanwhile, DFA Undersecretary Arriola said they are ready to bring everyone home. She said, “those who are ready to go home, will be home. For those who can’t leave yet, we will work hard to bring you home. We see that we have to fasttrack the repatriation.”

The DFA is already planning to send 230 Filipinos home over the weekend, including the remains of the two Overseas Filipino Workers.