Video Captures Beirut Explosion Disrupting Bride’s Wedding Photo Shoot, Blast Impact Sends Her Running

Aug 07, 2020 by apost team

On August 4th, 2020, an explosion ripped through the Lebanese capital of Beirut,  causing at least 135 deaths, thousands injured, and an estimated number of 300,000 people homeless according to Lebanon's Health Ministry.

Just a few moments before the blast occurred, Dr. Israa Seblani was posing for her wedding album in her white gown in the Saifi village area on the streets of Beirut. She was celebrating her wedding day with her husband Ahmad Sbeih, who was proudly watching her smile in her beautiful dress. 

As Israa posed for a snapshot, a loud bang was heard in the background. Her wedding photographer Mahmoud Nakib ended up capturing the explosion as it went down. 

“We were filming an outdoor photo session for the (Seblani) and (Sbeih), then we heard an explosion,” Nakib told CNN.

“That was the first explosion, we thought that is was far away, we continued filming normally.”

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The video shows the dramatic footage as the photographer felt the shockwave that almost knocked him over. 

Only seconds later, they felt a second explosion that left the wedding party running for shelter. The wedding party managed to escape to shelter uninjured. 

The clip below shows the explosion as it went down. One minute the cameraman is recording a smiling bride and the next minute he is trying to find his bearings as the camera rolls on to record the impact of the shockwave on the bride. The camera was rolling amid the chaos capturing footage of people screaming as glass, and debris were flying through the city enveloping it in a black cloud. 

The Lebanese doctor recounted the dramatic scene in an interview with Deutsche Welle:

“At that moment, when the explosion happened, all that came to my mind was: now I’m losing my life. I am losing my husband,” Seblani said in a video interview from Beirut on Friday. “No more, as we say, happy ever after, a happy ending of the love story.”

Dr. Seblani who is based in the US had arrived in Lebanon three weeks ago to prepare for her wedding. She further added:

“I never imagined…such a thing could happen, especially on my wedding day,” she said.

“I was asking myself: when am I going to die ? How am I going to die? Am I going to feel it?”

Describing the aftermath, Dr. Seblani said:

“My heart goes [out] to the people who died and people who got injured. Also, the people who are still buried under the buildings.”

As the search for survivors continues, Dr. Seblani shared her hopes for a quick recovery for the city and its inhabitants.

We from apost.com send our prayers to Beirut!