A fire broke out at a Rohingya refugee camp in Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar, early today, destroying hundreds of shelters and triggering panic among camp residents.
The blaze started around 3:00am beside camp 16 in Palongkhali union.
Fire Officer Dollar Tripura of Ukhiya Fire Service Station said the fire originated from a BRAC-run learning centre in the D-4 block of the camp and quickly spread to nearby shelters and sheds.
The late-night fire forced many refugees to flee to safer places to save their lives, creating chaos across the camp.
Dollar said around 400 to 500 shelters were affected, of which approximately 150 were completely destroyed.
Photo: Collected
Two firefighting units rushed to the scene after receiving the alert around 3:20am. The fire was brought under control at about 7:30am, by which time hundreds of shelters had already been gutted, he said.
The exact extent of the damage could not be determined immediately, Dollar added. He said four to five people suffered minor injuries in the incident.
Based on preliminary accounts from camp residents, the fire may have originated from a cooking stove in a kitchen, he said.
Fire incidents have increased in Rohingya camps in recent months, raising concerns over safety and fire prevention there. On December 26, a hospital at camp 4 was destroyed by fire, while more than 10 shelters were damaged in a blaze at the Kutupalong registered camp the previous night.
