A deadly explosion rocked Latakia, Syria’s coastal port city, on Sunday, when ordnance from the nation’s 13-year civil war detonated in a metal scrap storage space, collapsing a four-story building. The Syrian Civil Defence, or White Helmets, reported recovering 16 bodies—five women, five children, and six men—after overnight rescue efforts, with 18 others injured. The blast, in the southern Raml neighborhood, underscores the persistent danger of unexploded remnants scattered across Syria.

The White Helmets and locals identified the ground-floor scrap site as the epicenter, a grim reminder of the war’s enduring toll. The United Nations noted in February that over 100 people have died from such ordnance in 13 years, with 1,400 devices neutralized and 138 contaminated zones flagged since Bashar Assad’s December ouster. Latakia, a historic Assad stronghold, has seen recent upheaval, including a March 6 ambush by loyalist gunmen on a security patrol in Jableh, sparking clashes that killed over 1,000, mostly Alawites, in revenge attacks.

Posts on X from the Syrian Red Crescent and Civil Defence align with this toll, reporting 14-16 deaths and ongoing rescue operations. The surge in violence, the worst since Assad’s fall, highlights Syria’s fragile post-war state, where unexploded ordnance continues to claim lives amid sectarian tensions and rebuilding challenges.