[Anderson:] We have breaking news out of Lebanon's Capital Beirut. Witnesses, including our own teams there on the ground, have heard an explosion and have seen what we are witnessing in these images now of smoke rising. No word yet on the cause. The CNN Bureau is about a kilometer from the port from where the smoke seems to be rising. This is an extensive area, and the entire area, it is reported, has seen windows blown out. These pictures just coming in to us. Apologies for the slight technical glitches on these, but this is as we speak, images today, this afternoon out of Beirut in Lebanon where a huge explosion has rocked the Capital. And this the aftermath of that as we see that smoke continuing to rise from what looks to be the port area in Beirut. We are, as I understand it now, able to contact Ben Wedeman who is on the line. He is in Beirut. Ben, if you can hear me, what can you tell us about these images? What do we understand to have happened?
[Ben Wedeman, Cnn Senior International Correspondent:] Well, within the last hour, in fact, the reporter for the "Los Angeles Times" here in Beirut had tweeted a picture of the fire in the port itself. And just about 15 minutes later after he tweeted that picture, that video, there was a massive explosion.
[Wedeman:] I mean, something the likes I've never seen before. The windows of the CNN Bureau have been completely blown out. I'm looking at the buildings all around me. Many windows are also smashed. There is lots of glass and other debris in the street. There is still smoke rising from the port, and there was an odd red cloud hanging over the downtown District of Beirut. Now, we're seeing local media saying this was some sort of accident in the port, but the size of the explosion is hard to explain no idea at this point any casualties, fatalities. We know there are casualties, fatalities I haven't seen a figure on yet. But certainly this is something that really shook this city like I've never seen before, and I've been through wars and civil wars here in Lebanon, and this is something unheard of.
[Anderson:] Ben, can you just describe where you are, and then where the port is in relation to downtown Beirut?
[Wedeman:] Well, I'm in the wreckage of the CNN Bureau right now which overlooks what's known as the downtown. And to our left here is the port, which normally has five or six ships in it. It's an area where normally you're not you can't gain easy access to, but even though it's about a kilometer away, perhaps slightly less, the force of the blast was just massive, absolutely massive. I'm right now just treading on broken glass of what used to be the CNN office in Beirut.
[Anderson:] You're listening to Ben Wedeman reporting from Beirut where a large explosion has rocked the Lebanese Capital this afternoon. Lebanese state-run NNA news, Ben, reporting that a major fire has broken out in a warehouse for firecrackers where they report strong explosions were heard. I realize that this is early, just after this explosion. You've been explaining the aftermath and the effect and impact on the Bureau. Does that does what NNA is reporting tend to make sense to your mind?
[Wedeman:] I am looking at local television running pictures of the explosion itself, and that doesn't look like fireworks to me. I mean, it almost is a mushroom cloud when it goes off. And why there would be that amount of fireworks in Beirut port is beyond my level of comprehension.
[Anderson:] Can you just explain the atmosphere in the city at present?
[Wedeman:] At present its panic. People are driving around on their scooters. They're looking to see what happened. There was a large crowd earlier looking for injured. People are looking everywhere to find out if they can be of assistance in any way. Keep in mind, Beirut has seen its troubles in the past. It's certainly been an area of unrest for the last few months, but it's not of this nature, so this has really taken everyone by complete surprise, and people are really in a state of shock at the moment. I can hear sirens in the distance, no doubt going in various locations in Beirut at this point to find people who are injured, to perhaps try to put out this fire that is at this moment spewing black smoke into the skies over Beirut, over the port, and over the city as well. Becky?
[Anderson:] Ben, so those views, if you may just be joining us, can you explain as we look at these images coming in to us at CNN exactly what has happened and when in Beirut this afternoon, and what we understand, clearly, the details very, very limited at present, but what we understand to have happened?
[Wedeman:] What we understand, and as I was saying on the phone earlier, was that there was a fire somewhere in the port. This was video tweeted by the reporter for the "Los Angeles Times" a very reliable source, and within about half an hour, there was this massive blast, huge. You could hear glass breaking everywhere, not just in our office, but in the entire downtown area, which contains, of course, the prime ministry, several ministries, many five-star hotels, stores and offices. It's an area that on a normal day is quite packed, quite active.
[Anderson:] Clearly there will be much speculation as to what has happened here, and until we get confirmed details, we won't be part of that conjecture and speculation. But as we look at these images and as we await more information to confirm exactly what has happened, just describe if you will, just life in Beirut at present. These are difficult times, not just for the Capital City, but for the country as a whole.
[Wedeman:] The city is in a state of panic. The city is in a state of shock right now. People are trying to figure out what on earth has happened. But I think people's immediate concerns, and as I'm talking to you on the phone, I'm getting lots of missed calls because I think people are calling in. They're looking for their loved ones. They're looking for people who they can't get through to on the telephone at the moment, because either in some areas the cell phone system is down or the people they're trying to get in touch with may be injured or worse at this point. So it really just happened not long ago, and it's still very difficult to collect the sort of information that will allow us to get a very clear picture of what has happened beyond just this massive explosion and now the ongoing fire from the area of Beirut port.
[Anderson:] Before I let you go, just again, for those who may just be joining us and are eager to find out what these images are suggesting, you talked about a massive explosion, and you describe earlier the impact that you felt and the damage to the Bureau which is not very far away in downtown Beirut. If you can just repeat what happened, Ben?
[Wedeman:] Okay. I was basically at about 40 minutes ago, though at this point I can't keep the time completely straight in my head, there was the building shook like it was an earthquake. And I ducked down, and moments later the blast impact actually hit this area where we are, and I heard glass shattering everywhere. In the adjacent room, in the room after that, in the buildings in front of us, and very soon afterward, there was the wail of sirens as ambulances and fire trucks started, from what I could see from my vantage point, heading in the direction of the blast. And I saw many Beirut residents on scooters and cars looking around, checking for injured people. I had several people come into the shambles of our office asking if everyone here is okay. I'm the only one here. And right now people are really just trying to figure out where their loved ones are, how they are, and then people will hopefully start getting answers about what the hell happened in Beirut this afternoon.
[Anderson:] Ben Wedeman, who is speaking to us from the Beirut Bureau, the CNN Beirut Bureau, which is really just moments away from the port in Beirut where you are seeing images of significant smoke, huge clouds of black smoke after what was, as Ben described it, an enormous explosion which blew out the windows of not just the CNN Beirut Bureau, but homes and offices around the area. I'm reading on social media, for example, people have lost the glass in their windows and 7 kilometers away from where this blast happened. This is what we understand to have happened. Details are very, very slim at present. We are working every source that we have in Beirut to try and identify exactly what happened in Beirut in the port, as we understand it. That's certainly where this smoke appears to be coming from today, this afternoon and early on into the evening now in Beirut. As Ben described, panic in Beirut as people, quite frankly, try and get in touch with their relatives to ensure that they are okay as the details are as limited as to exactly what has gone on. Ben, I know that you are monitoring as we continue to look at the pictures coming in to CNN, you are also monitoring local TV. Is there any further detail on what, locally, has happened?
[Wedeman:] Okay, well, what it appears is that the authorities are saying there was an accidental blast of some sort. They are reporting that there is a large number the authorities are reporting that there was large number of injuries as a result of this explosion. That's really all we have in terms of people getting hurt. It would be a miracle of miracles if several people, at least, were not killed in this massive explosion. Becky?
[Anderson:] Does it resonate with you, as I look at social media comments suggesting that glass from this explosion, the impact glass shattering in people's homes some 7 to 10 kilometers away from Beirut Port? Does that make sense?
[Wedeman:] It's believable. It's believable. There's shock waves, and I said from where I am, it felt like an earthquake initially. And when I felt what I thought was an earthquake, I just ducked down and fortunately avoided any injury to myself. But yes, it's certainly absolutely plausible that 5, 6, 7 kilometers away that glasses might have been shattered. Because looking out the window here, I see almost only shattered windows. Not only shattered glass, but the actual frames of the windows are blown out as well in several locations of this building just across from where I am.
[Anderson:] Ben Wedeman on the phone from the CNN Bureau working on his own at present as our producer is out, clearly working our sources trying to identify the source of this explosion. Ben, there are reports that there was more than one explosion. Has that been confirmed at this point?
[Wedeman:] I only heard and felt one explosion. I mentioned the fire that was coming from the port, and it sounded like there were in the video that was posted by the "L.A. Times" Correspondent, you heard pops which sounded like not small explosions, nothing particularly noteworthy that one would have thought listening to them that they could have been just sort of commercial goods burning up and blowing up in a fire. But as far as I can tell, there was just one absolutely massive explosion which has caused all this damage in the Lebanese Capital.
[Anderson:] Ben, you have been around the block, as it you've been in war zones, you've been in situations where things have been very, very difficult. You described to me earlier how you felt when you felt this explosion? You said you had never felt anything like it, correct?
[Wedeman:] That's correct. You know, as you said, I've been around the block. I've seen some pretty large explosions, but this one was I was at Tora Bora when they were dropping Daisy Cutters. And this was bigger.
[Anderson:] If you are just joining us, you're listening to the voice of Ben Wedeman who is in Beirut at the CNN Bureau which is in downtown Beirut, very short distance away from Beirut port. The smoke that you see on your screens is smoke from a huge explosion from that port, which Ben has been reporting, blew out the windows of the CNN Bureau and the windows of those buildings around in downtown Beirut. As we assess the social media footage coming in on this, one line clearly resonating again and again, repeated by so many who are either in Beirut or in the suburbs of Beirut. This explosion had an impact 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 kilometers away, people reporting that their homes shook and their windows were blown out as much as 10 kilometers away from the source of this explosion, which, at present, is unclear. What we do understand is that this was in Beirut Port, and you are seeing evidence there of people who, it seems, have been injured as a result of this explosion. Ben is at present, as he speaks to me, also working his sources and keeping one eye on local media, trying to get a better assessment and detail on exactly what happened. Ben, we are going to have to take a very short break in a moment or so, so just before we do, at present, what is it that we understand to be the very latest on what has happened in Beirut this afternoon?
[Wedeman:] What has happened is that there was a massive explosion from the direction of the Port of Beirut. Buildings shook, glasses were broken for kilometers around, a huge cloud of smoke, which seemed oddly red, as I saw it drifting not far above our Bureau came from that direction. Immediately afterwards, there were sirens of ambulances and fire trucks as the ambulances go out looking for the injured and perhaps the dead, and the fire trucks are trying to put out this fire that still seems to be raging in Beirut Port. Now, the local news, the National News Agency of Lebanon is reporting some sort of accident in the Port. It's still not clear. Certainly if it was fireworks as some news sources are claiming, those were some damn big fireworks. The explosion that was videoed by eyewitnesses looked something like a mushroom cloud, briefly. And now people are still sort of driving around. I can see from my vantage point in the shambles of the CNN Bureau, just trying to figure out what on earth has happened. And I know from acquaintances here in Beirut, one of the first things or one of the things many people are still doing as we speak is trying to find out the whereabouts and the conditions of their loved ones.
[Anderson:] Sure. As local media reports multiple injuries at present. Those are reports from local media until we can sand up these reports. We will attribute them and thus, Ben, we are going to take a very short break. Stay with us as we continue to monitor these images and the sirens wailing there in Beirut as cloud rises from what has been described as a huge explosion from one of the buildings in Beirut port. More detail after this.