4 stories for the 4 years after the explosion in Beirut

"Four years!

Yes, it's been four years by now.

Maybe time was fast for some and slow for others, but we have to face the fact that some people are still lingering because of what happened on August 4, 2020.

Life is just not the same anymore and the chances to pick it up from where we left it on that day, seems to be almost impossible for those people who are labeled now as simply the unlucky ones.

Here and there, wherever we turn, we meet those faces with wrinkles traced as deep as their sorrows. Their heavy burdens show even when they try to mimic a smile because a true smile has become a luxury on such challenging days that drain them slowly and leave them breathless.

There in Mar Mkhayel, on Armenia street, we find Souad, a widow in her eighties, a childless woman with a sharp mind whose husband died a couple of years ago when proper medical care was a privilege that he couldn’t afford after his retirement lost its worth.

She’s still there in their old home, trying to figure out how to survive without electricity and consequently without running water, income nor family support. Last year, neighbors installed a wire and a lamp for her but nowadays, the dusty chandeliers in her apartment are a mere reminder of the good old days.

She’s too old to cook so her food is provided by Barrad el Hay. And as if her loneliness is not enough, fear is crippling in her when the dark is settling in the house whispering scary stories to her ears, stories of what can possibly happen if a thief breaks in while she’s awake waiting for electricity to be able to use a malfunctioning water pump to simply have running water. Two basic needs have become a daily struggle for this woman, something she couldn’t imagine happening to her in her worst nightmares.

We left her wondering how someone can survive loneliness in such harsh conditions while we moved a bit farther North in Rmeil to check on two of the first families we supported after the explosion and who live in the same old building.

We meet Marie, whose husband needs regular dialysis and young children work hard to cover for the medical bills of their father and put bread on the table. She is always there welcoming us with her shy blushing face and finds it hard to admit the truth that the pipes are broken in Suzanne’s kitchen and that the water is dripping from the ceiling of hers. She knows Suzanne can barely feed her daughters and tries to be there for her, so she chooses to keep quiet and endure the moisture and the fungi spreading around with all the health risks.

We just knew we needed to do something about it and we knew that God will provide us with the means to be there for them.

We drove up the hill in Geitawi to visit Fr Joseph’s house where he’s waiting for us with his wife Ghada who works in La Sagesse school administration. Her smile doesn’t make up for the sadness in her eyes. She is still trying to cope with her youngest son’s sickness. He’s much better now but having her youngest diagnosed with cancer shortly after the blast was not something she was ready to face. The young man is a cancer survivor now but the scars in her heart are as damaging as the cracks in the ceiling and the walls of their house hit by the moisture and the fungi. Their house was badly shattered after that doomed day but the heavy presence of cancer didn’t leave them much time to take care of a wrecked home when the young man was lying in a hospital bed.

Four years now and the damage is piling up as cracks and seepage reign over the house. The situation doesn’t hold Ghada from trying to find a way to support her family so she started a small catering business from home. She made sure to offer us cake and cookies she made that day and we confess we are hooked!

From there, driving through Ashrafieh, we reached Dr Samir’s dental clinic where he was waiting for us. We went up the elevator of this nice building only to face a shocking view: what used to be a well arranged clinic is now a wreck with damages to doors, windows, pipes, ventilation and a non functioning dental chair. The sixty-four year old man is standing there welcoming us apologetically in what used to be the clinic that supported him and his 3 old sisters. He had to choose between repairing the home that sheltered the family or the clinic that supported them. There was no means to restore both and for him the choice was obvious given the fact that one of his sisters is suffering from cancer. He ended up consuming his financial resources and unable to restore and start over as a dentist. Such a hit when someone was supposed to start enjoying a peaceful retirement.

What we saw was the typical situation of a family who enjoyed a decent life before the crisis and was not classified as a poor family after the explosion. Consequently, it was not eligible to be labeled as a beneficiary by NGOs. They were in better condition than the poor and poorer than the rich so they fell into the gray category, the unlucky ones.

The sad truth is that the donors targeted the poorest families for support over and over. But the middle class received the hardest hit when the incomes in LBP lost value and the bank savings became mere digits in worthless bank statements.

We left the place wondering how many stories are left untold and how many people out there are struggling financially and with their dignity recalling days when they used to lend a hand to others but never expected a day will come when they will have to extend a hand to ask to be helped in difficult times that are expanding four years now and God know how long."  Sumar Sleem, Head of Mission in Lebanon and Syria

To support those 4 stories please donate:

IBAN Number for USD: PL11 1140 2004 0000 3712 0693 5417

IBAN Number for EURO: PL16 1140 2004 0000 3512 0693 5425

IBAN Number for PLN: PL 70 1140 2004 0000 3002 7483 9388

BIC/SWIFT: BREXPLPWMBK

Recipient name: Stowarzyszenie “Dom Wschodni – Domus Orientalis”

Recipient adres: ul. Piotrkowska 80, 90-102 Lodz, POLAND  

Transfer title: Solidarity with Beirut

To learn more about our Mission in Lebanon Solidarity with Beirut