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One child killed, destroying 400 shelters and 2000 left homeless as fire rips through Rohingya refugee camp
A six-year-old boy has been killed, destroying 400 shelters and an estimated 2,000 people have been left homeless, including 1,000 children by the sixth fire this year to tear through the Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh, according to the international non-government organization Save the Children,
The fire raced through camp 5, between Blocks D6 and D11 of the world’s largest refugee settlement in Cox’s Bazar at around 4.30p.m. local time on March 8, 2022, afternoon, destroying 400 shelters, which for almost five years have been the closest thing to home for Rohingya families fleeing Myanmar.
Fire Service and Civil Defence department official Zahed Chowdhury said the charred body of the six-year-old boy was found in the debris after firefighters doused the flames that broke out in one of the sprawling refugees’ camps in Ukhiya sub-district in the afternoon.
This follows a massive fire in January, which destroyed 1,200 shelters and left more than 5,000 people homeless, and four smaller fires between January and March.
Some of the families who lost their homes are staying with relatives in the same camp area, while others have been displaced to nearby camps. Eight volunteers working with Save the Children also lost their homes in the blaze.
Save the Children is providing psychological first aid, food, medical support and reunifying children separated from their families during the fire.
“We have nothing left, everything burnt to ashes in the fire,” said 13-year-old Fahim*, whose family lost their shelter and all their possessions in the blaze.
Save the Children’s Country Director in Bangladesh, Onno van Manen, said; “This is the sixth fire to tear through Cox’s Bazar in less than three months. We’re seeing a huge increase in the number of fires in the camps and the risk is only going to go up as the climate crisis worsens.”
“No one should have to watch the few belongings they own be reduced to wreckage. These camps were supposed to be a safe haven for refugees who fled their homes in Myanmar. Events like these are incredibly distressing for children, and Save the Children is providing them with the emotional support they need to recover.
“The shelters made of dry bamboo and tarpaulin are incredibly flammable. More fire-resistant materials must be permitted and additional openings in the fencing need to be built so that refugees can reach safety in an emergency. The risk of fires in these densely populated and confined areas is enormous, but it is avoidable with the right support and infrastructure in place.”
Onno van Manen, Save the Children’s Country Director in Bangladesh
“The shelters made of dry bamboo and tarpaulin are incredibly flammable. More fire-resistant materials must be permitted and additional openings in the fencing need to be built so that refugees can reach safety in an emergency. The risk of fires in these densely populated and confined areas is enormous, but it is avoidable with the right support and infrastructure in place.”
According to the Inter Sector Coordination Group Daily Incident Reporting, there were over 150 fires in the camps in 2021 – a staggering 180 per cent increase on the 84 fires seen in 2020.
Meanwhile, one of Cox’s Bazar’s largest fires occurred in March of last year. Fire destroyed more than 17,000 tents and evacuated approximately 80,000 refugees.
According to Firdaus Guritno of ACT’s Global Humanity Network team, there have been two fatalities so far. Firdaus emphasized that the number of victims may rise due to the size of the fire. It is impossible to collect data in the field completely. According to our team’s field report.
The mutually agreed goal of repatriating Rohingya to their former villages in western Rakhine State – always a tall order given the active conflict between the Arakan Army (AA) and the Myanmar military, and the inhospitable political conditions there – has grown vastly more complicated since the military’s seizure of power in February of last year.
“Unfortunately, these fires have become as common as the world’s neglect of Rohingya refugees.”
Mainul Islam, acting country director for the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) in Bangladesh.
“Unfortunately, these fires have become as common as the world’s neglect of Rohingya refugees,” said Mainul Islam, acting country director for the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) in Bangladesh.
“Lives continue to be in limbo, and in the absence of any meaningful progress toward durable solutions, an entire community is caught in a cycle of repair and loss,” he more added.
“They kept the fire from spreading until the fire brigade arrived and brought the flames under control, without their help, it could have been much worse,” said Zia Naing, a Rohingya photographer from camp.
“No-one knows when or where the next fire might break out and I don’t know where I will sleep with my children tonight. I don’t know why this keeps happening to us,” Hamida, a victim and refugee from the camp.
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