Hadath fire kills one, injures four, Civil Defense says

BEIRUT — The Lebanese Civil Defense announced on Wednesday that one person was killed and four others injured in a major fire that broke out at a gas station in Hadath, Mount Lebanon. The statement came just hours after firefighters managed to bring the blaze under control.

According to the statement, a Syrian national was transported to Saint George Hospital in Hadath, where he later died from his injuries. Four others were injured: the tanker driver, a Lebanese citizen, suffered burns and was taken to Geitaoui Hospital, which specializes in treating severe burn cases. The other victims — two Lebanese and one Syrian — suffered burns and respiratory issues and were hospitalized at Saint George and Sacre-Cœur hospitals.

Sound of an explosion and panic

The major fire broke out early in the morning in Hadath, a southeastern suburb of Beirut, sending thick plumes of black smoke into the air. Civil Defense told L’Orient Today that the exact cause of the fire was still unknown at the time, as Israeli drones were heard flying over the capital. While the two events appear unrelated — no airstrikes were reported — a loud explosion before the fire triggered panic among residents, according to the state-run National News Agency (NNA).

Units from the Internal Security Forces (ISF) were deployed to cordon off the area, while Lebanese Red Cross teams worked to evacuate people affected by the flames and toxic smoke.

In a later statement, Civil Defense said its teams had "successfully brought the fire under control in record time," preventing the blaze from spreading further and averting what it described as a “certain catastrophe,” given the hazardous nature of the materials involved. The fire reportedly began inside a fuel tanker and a storage area containing flammable goods.

The response was coordinated under the supervision of Interior Minister Ahmad Hajjar and interim Civil Defense Director General Nabil Farah. Ten fire trucks and an ambulance were dispatched from nearby centers in Tahwita, Hadath, Kfarshima, Bseba, Mansourieh, Dekwaneh, and Haret Hreik. The fire, which broke out at 9:07 a.m., was fully extinguished by 9:40 a.m., according to the statement.