BEIRUT (CNS) \u2014 Nearly a year after the blast at the Beirut port, the memory of that night is still so vivid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lebanese Hospital Geitaoui, located about a half-mile from the site of the explosion, suffered extensive damage the night of 4 August.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The disaster — one of the biggest nonnuclear explosions in history — destroyed large sections of the capital city, mostly in Christian areas. More than 200 people were killed, more than 6,000 injured and more than 300,000 displaced. Of the 350 injured people taken to Geitaoui, 15 could not be saved; some died before arriving at the hospital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe felt the people\u2019s misery and their desperation,\u201d said Sister Hadia Abi Chebli, a member of the Maronite Sisters of the Holy Family and one of the hospital directors-general.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat night, I cried like a child,\u201d recalled Dr. Pierre Yared, her co-director of the 260-bed hospital for the last 11 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was like an Armageddon scene from a movie,\u201d Yared told Catholic News Service. \u201cWe were in a catastrophic situation. No electricity.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The injured were treated in hallways and the hospital\u2019s parking lot with limited illumination from cellphones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe coordination between the nursing and medical staff and all the workers in the hospital was outstanding,\u201d Yared said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the time of the blast, there were no injuries among the patients, medical staff, employees or visitors inside Geitaoui, despite the magnitude of destruction in the building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNot one was injured. It\u2019s a miracle,\u201d Sister Hadia told CNS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was the hand of God,\u201d added Yared, a Melkite Catholic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the window of their shared office, Sister Hadia points to the Beirut port, its collapsed grain silos, like melted candles, a constant reminder of the disaster. \u201cLook how close we are.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She reaches for an icon of Lebanon\u2019s beloved St. Charbel. Sister Hadia shared how, two days before the blast, on a Sunday, she went to St. Charbel\u2019s tomb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI stayed for many hours, praying, crying, asking him to help the hospital,\u201d which had been struggling amid Lebanon\u2019s severe economic crisis. At that time, Geitaoui was also in the grips of the coronavirus pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After her supplications to St. Charbel, Sister Hadia recalled, \u201cI felt a tremendous peace.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhen I came back, I told Dr. Yared, \u2018Don\u2019t worry. St. Charbel is with us, because I invited him to come to our hospital to help us,\u201d she recounted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI pray to him daily and he\u2019s still here with us. This is my belief,\u201d Sister Hadia said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe\u2019s the guardian of the hospital,\u201d Yared added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Geitaoui — a nonprofit Catholic institution that encompasses more than 4.7 million square feet, sustained $7 million in damages from the blast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a big figure for a hospital like ours,\u201d Yared said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite holdups due to pandemic lockdowns and economic struggles related to the dramatic devaluation of Lebanon\u2019s currency by 90%, the reconstruction of Geitaoui began. The hospital is now fully operational.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Soon after the blast, the Vatican\u2019s Congregation for Eastern Churches charged New York-based Catholic Near East Welfare Association and the Paris-based L\u2019Oeuvre d\u2019Orient with coordinating worldwide Catholic aid to Lebanon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While L\u2019Oeuvre d\u2019Orient focused on Lebanon\u2019s Catholic schools, CNEWA concentrated its efforts on rehabilitating Beirut\u2019s two damaged Catholic hospitals, the Geitaoui and Rosary Sisters\u2019 facilities, as well as two dispensaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was a desperate situation,\u201d said Michel Constantin, CNEWA\u2019s regional director based in Beirut. \u201cThanks to all our generous donors, we were successful in putting back Geitaoui Hospital fully into service.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWithout the help of CNEWA, it would be impossible to rehabilitate the hospital,\u201d Yared said. \u201cThis was a salvation for us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Named for the priest who founded the hospital in 1927, Geitaoui is entrusted to the Maronite Sisters of the Holy Family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Every room of the hospital is adorned with a crucifix. About 20 percent of the hospital\u2019s employees are Muslim, as are a third of its patients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although Geitaoui endured the catastrophic blast, it faces increasing challenges continuing its mission as Lebanon sinks deeper into economic misery, which has plunged more than 50 percent of the population into poverty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Historically renowned for its outstanding health care as \u201cthe hospital of the Middle East,\u201d Lebanon is on the verge of a serious health crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are in such a difficult time. We are fighting to survive as an institution and to survive as a country. It\u2019s a daily fight,\u201d Yared said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are bleeding. Help is needed,\u201d for the hospital, Sister Hadia said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"