Authors: Dr Helou Mariana , Tanios Alain , Chaaban Toufic , Yammine Kayssar

Abstract

On September 17, 2024, an unforeseen attack due to the Pagers Explosion targeting a military party in Lebanon left more than 2750 casualties. Almost two-thirds of the injuries were in the face, eyes or hands. The Lebanese American University Medical Center received 38 injured and admitted 36 patients, 13 of them to the Intensive care unit. A total of 33 patients needed surgeries. Most injuries were amputated fingers and eye injuries. Thirty-two (71%) patients had a form of finger amputation. The most prevalent amputated fingers were the 3 most radial ones. Thirty-one (69%) patients had at least one eviscerated eye. Seventeen patients (38%) presented with combined eye and hand injuries. The healthcare workers faced major challenges on that night: the severity of the injured, the unprecedent type of injuries with the same pattern and the urgent need for ophthalmology and orthopedics within the hospital and across the country. This report highlights major challenges that were encountered during this explosion and provides possible strategies to overcome them.

Keywords: pagers explosion, disaster, Lebanon