Climbing out from the depths of hell four years after Beirut Port explosion

Four years after a massive explosion ripped Beirut apart, the scars have yet to heal. Colin Sheridan talks to one family rebuilding their lives after the death of their two-year-old son

A 25m steel sculpture, 'The Gesture', created by Lebanese artist Nadim Karam from the debris of the blast at the port of Lebanon's capital Beirut on August 4, 2020. Picture: Joseph Eid/AFP via Getty

At 6.07pm on August 4, 2020, Beirut was calm, and very, very hot.

The streets, empty for so long because of covid restrictions, had returned to a normality commensurate with the city’s reputation for elegant chaos.