Large swaths of Beirut were destroyed on Tuesday when a huge blast ripped through the Lebanese capital. The explosion, blamed on 2,700 tonnes of ammonium nitrate stored at the port, sent a shockwave across the city that shattered windows and collapsed roofs. The death toll stands at at least 135, with around 5,000 injured.

The governor of Beirut has estimated the cost of the damage as more than $3bn and said up to 300,000 people had suffered damage to their homes, leaving some uninhabitable.

The disaster hit a nation already struggling with an economy in free fall, rising food prices and the coronavirus pandemic.

Here is a list of organisations seeking donations to help Lebanon’s victims:

CNW @ConflictsW

Footage of the initial fire at Beirut port yesterday shortly before the massive explosion

From Jaras Scoop FM
5:51 AM · Aug 5, 2020

OCEANSIDE, Calif. (KSWB) — Family and service members were in mourning Tuesday after the military found remains of missing servicemen and the amphibious assault vehicle that sank off the coast of San Clemente Island.

Seven Marines and a Navy sailor were missing after the 26-ton landing craft sank last week. Another Marine was pronounced dead at the scene and seven others were rescued.

The Marines say the amphibious assault vehicle sank to a depth of 385 feet after it began taking on water during a routine training exercise. The Navy plans to place equipment near the vehicle and begin recovering the remains.

I MEF @1stMEF

Officials with the @15thMEUOfficial and the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) positively identified on Aug. 3 the location of the amphibious assault vehicle (AAV) that sunk off the coast of San Clemente Island on July 30.

I MEF @1stMEF

@USNavy Undersea Rescue Command confirmed human remains were identified with remotely-operated video systems aboard HOS Dominator, an undersea search & rescue ship. The Navy has expedited the movement of assets to recover the remains of the Marines and Sailor, and raise the AAV.

4:01 PM · Aug 4, 2020

Tom Phillips @tomphillipsin

The top story in Brazil this morning seems to be a politician/doctor being ridiculed for suggesting ozone therapy by rectal insufflation ("soooo easy! soooo quick!" ) is an "excellent treatment for Covid-19

Quote Tweet: UOL Notícias @UOLNoticias

SC: Prefeito avalia tratamento para covid com aplicação retal de ozônio http://zpr.io/HzTRM
8:57 AM · Aug 4, 2020

PARIS -- Pipe by precious pipe, the organ that once thundered through Notre Dame Cathedral is being taken apart after last year's devastating fire. Amazingly, the 8,000-pipe organ survived the fire, which consumed the cathedral’s roof and toppled its spire. But the blaze coated the instrument in toxic lead dust that must now be painstakingly removed.

The mammoth task of dismantling, cleaning and re-assembling France’s largest musical instrument started Monday and is expected to last nearly four years.

Once restored, it will take six months just to tune the organ, according to the state agency overseeing Notre Dame’s restoration. Its music isn’t expected to resound again through the medieval Paris monument until 2024, to the dismay of the cathedral's dedicated organists.
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The general who leads the agency said the organ, which dates from 1733, will next play again on April 16, 2024, marking five years since the fire.

Judge Esther Salas has released a nine-minute videotaped statement about last month’s shooting death of her son and the wounding of her husband and is the first time Judge Salas has spoken publicly since the shooting two weeks ago.

In the remarks, Salas said the gunman had targeted her because of her position as a federal judge.

“Two weeks ago, my life as I knew it changed in an instant, and my family will never be the same,” Salas began. “A madman, who I believe was targeting me because of my position as a federal judge, came to my house.”

Salas, holding back tears, begins to detail the harrowing incident.....