SHIPPING company CMA CGM Group says it is “extremely saddened” by the huge explosion that ripped through Beirut port this week, expressing “our deepest solidarity with all the Lebanese people”.
The company has confirmed their Lebanon headquarter were “severely damaged” by the blast which killed around 100 people according to recent media reports.
“Deeply rooted in Lebanon, the CMA CGM Group has launched an emergency plan to conduct a thorough health and safety assessment of its 261 staff members based in Beirut,” CMA CGM said in a statement.
“At this stage, the preliminary toll shows two seriously injured and many minor injuries. One member of our staff at the port is currently missing. We are doing our utmost to locate him, in collaboration with local authorities.”
As reported by DCN, the group’s headquarters in Lebanon are a few hundred meters from the site of the explosion, with the facility being “severely damaged”.
The CMA CGM LYRA (11,400 TEU), which was in operation on Tuesday evening, was 1.5km from the explosion site.
None of the crew was injured and the vessel was not damaged.
CMA CGM, with its subsidiary CEVA Logistics, has offered the Lebanese and French governments logistical and maritime assistance in order to respond to the emergency.
“The CMA CGM Group is ensuring everything is in place to guarantee perfect business continuity and to maintain the supply of primary necessities to the country,” the company said in a statement.
An operational organisation has been put in place to establish a logistics hub in Tripoli.
All ships are being diverted to Tripoli.
The group has organised three recovery sites, of which two are in Beirut and one in Tripoli.
“In closing, we would like to salute the solidarity expressed by the Group’s staff members and partners around the world,” the company stated.
