How many kilotons of TNT was the equivalent to the blast in Beiruit?

There were about 2,500 tonnes of ammonium nitrate. But that chemical has only about 40% of the chemical energy of TNT.

So this was roughly a ONE kiloton explosion. That’s a lot - but compare it with 15 kilotons for the Hiroshima atom bomb and 21 kilotons for the Nagasaki bomb…it’s not on that scale.

However, it’s not really “right” to compare the two. An atom bomb release energy in a much shorter pulse than an ammonium nitrate bomb - and (of course) there is the matter of radiation and fallout…neither of which are produced by an ammonium nitrate bomb. The effect of a slower explosive is different - not necessarily more or less bad - but different.

However, it’s clear that the Beirut bomb rates as one of the top 5 non-nuclear man-made explosions - and in the top three accidental/man-made explosions.

It also rates an easy number one for the sheer, insane stupidity of the government that allowed it to happen.

*A Russian ship, full of fertilizer is headed for Mozambique - but is forced to stop in Beirut with engine trouble.
*The ship inspectors rule that it’s not seaworthy - and don’t allow the ship to leave the harbor. They send half of the Ukrainian crew home - but require a skeleton crew to remain to manage the ship.
*The ship owners say they don’t want the ship anymore so they’re not going to repair it - and the cargo owners say they don’t want the cargo anymore.
*The remaining crew don’t have the right visas - are not allowed off the ship - but the ship’s engines are never fixed - so they are forced to live there in increasingly squalid conditions without pay or any way to appeal for help for an entire year on diminishing food rations and medical supplies - they are literally starving to death before they are eventually allowed to go home on humanitarian grounds. (HOORAY!)
*The ship is unloaded into a warehouse under court order.
*Now NOBODY owns the cargo, nobody is responsible for it…it’s just sitting there.
*The port authorities understand the danger - and write to various judges and legal people and government people saying variations on: “It’s REALLY dangerous to have this much ammonium nitrate here in the port - right next to a city of 1 to 2 million people!! Can we please either ship it somewhere - or sell it locally?
*Over at least 6 years of trying to get rid of this cargo - they never get a response from any of the people they write to about it.
Right next to the warehouse are other warehouses holding more fertilizer and explosives. There is also a large oil storage depot right next door.

Then, without maintenance - the metal warehouse building starts to rust away - and a hole develops.
A guy with a welding torch is sent to repair the hole…
…a fire starts…
…
All it would have taken is ONE person in authority to say “Sure - sell the stuff - send the money to the state.”…or even “Sure - sell the stuff - send the money to me in used $20 bills in a suitcase - and I’ll handle it”.

*We really don’t know how many dead and injured there are.
*All but one of the hospitals in the city were basically destroyed.
*About 20 to 30% of the people in the city are now homeless.
*The largest port in the entire region is now pretty much inoperative.
*Donald Trump says it was a deliberate act - a “bomb”…which is odd because we know EXACTLY what happened - and none of his experts say it’s a bomb. <sigh>
https://www.quora.com/How-many-kilotons ... in-Beiruit