On Wednesday, an organization called on Lebanese authorities to address the issue of fermenting wheat, stored for years inside the still-standing silos at Beirut Port, partially destroyed by the Aug. 4, 2020 port explosion, warning of the risks of fire and collapse of what remains of the structure.

The campaign of solidarity for the silos, "an iconic image of the tragedy of the Aug. 4, 2020 explosion," made its appeal, in a statement sent to L'Orient-Le Jour by the association of victims' relatives, to the government, governor of Beirut, Higher Defense Council, Higher Army Council, as well as several ministers and the Civil Defense Directorate. It urged them to "assume their responsibilities" and act quickly to "resolve the problem of grain fermentation in the silos, which poses a major danger to public health." The statement called for an "effective strategy to remove these grains," by involving local and international experts to "acquire the necessary equipment to complete this operation."

Among the founding members of this group are associations of victims' families, residents of the area affected by the explosions, the Order of Engineers and Architects of Beirut, Beirut Urban Lab/AUB, Legal Agenda and many other heritage and local organizations. 

Every summer, a return to wheat fermentation

At the beginning of each summer, or during heatwaves across the country, like the one in recent days, weather conditions assist in the fermentation and deterioration of wheat stored in the silos, leading to a bad odor in some parts of the capital. In 2022, at least one fire was reportedly caused by fermenting grains abandoned in the northern part of the collapsed silo. 

A few weeks before the increase in temperatures, the campaign, which works for the preservation of the site as a "cultural heritage," denounced the inaction of authorities and the fact that demolition of the site was still being considered. In March 2022, the Najib Mikati government approved their demolition, before this decision was questioned two days later by the Ministry of Culture having listed the silos as a national heritage. However, on April 14, 2022, the cabinet revisited the issue, entrusting the Council for Development and Reconstruction with the demolition of the structure.

"The silos and the tragedy site represent the collective memory of the people and the city," the group said in its Wednesday statement. The statement noted that in 2021, the Recygroup company was tasked with emptying the silos of grains, with French funding, but this mission was not completed. 

At the end of 2022, experts told L’Orient-Le Jour that "the southern part of the structure continues to hold up and could be preserved without considerable difficulties."  

While the investigation into the explosion remains stymied by political pressures, victims' relatives and numerous civil society organizations are mobilized to demand the preservation of the explosion site and the silo building, to make it a memorial site to honor the victims of one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history.