On Tuesday, the Lebanese Shipping Agents Syndicate warned that intense power outages at the Beirut Port will lead to a “financial and economic catastrophe,” reported NNA.
The catastrophe presents itself in the destruction of refrigerated goods inside of around 500 containers containing medicines, food, and meat worth tens of millions of dollars.
In a statement, the Syndicate noted, “This painful reality is exacerbated by the failure to renew the assignment of the current Director-General Engineer Bassem al-Qaisi or to appoint a replacement for him, and it results in paralysis in the board of directors, stopping the conduct of exchange and diesel purchases, and the necessary maintenance of the port’s generators.”
The Syndicate called on the caretaker Minister of Public Works and Transportation Michel Najjar to help secure electricity to avert the incoming danger.
“The current diesel stock in the port’s tanks may not be enough until the end of tomorrow [Wednesday]” the Syndicate noted, calling for urgent support. 70% of Lebanon’s imports and exports pass through the Beirut Port.
Lebanon is already in the face of a medicine shortage and food crisis caused by the continually deteriorating economic conditions.
