UN verifies 15 deaths, 400 missing in Rohingya camps fire

By Md. Kamruzzaman

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) – The UN has confirmed that 15 people were killed and over 550 were injured in Monday's deadly fire in Rohingya refugee camps in southern Bangladesh.

"It has been confirmed that 15 people have tragically lost their lives, and around 560 are injured," UNHCR communications officer in Bangladesh Louise Donovan told Anadolu Agency on Tuesday. She added that 400 are still missing.

"These numbers may increase," Donovan said in a message to Anadolu Agency.

In the most devastating fire in the history of Rohingyas in Bangladesh, "around 45,000 people have been displaced, and approximately 10,000 shelters damaged or destroyed," the UN official added.

The fire erupted on Monday at around 3:30 p.m. local time (0930 GMT) and gutted thousands of makeshift tents of Rohingya until midnight.
After nine hours of efforts by the Fire Service and Civil Aviation and other agencies, the blaze was brought under control.

More than 1.2 million persecuted Rohingyas have been living in Bangladesh's camps, most of them fled the August 2017 brutal military crackdown in west Myanmar's Rakhine State.