Fire Destroys Hundreds of Rohingya Refugee Shelters in Bangladesh
2021-03-23
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1A fire in Bangladesh Monday destroyed hundreds of shelters at the Rohingya refugee camp near Cox's Bazar.
2Thousands of people are now without homes, officials and witnesses said.
3Mohammad Shamsud Douza is a top official with the government's Refugee, Relief and Repatriation Commission.
4He said the fire at Balukhali camp broke out late in the day and spread quickly through at least four blocks.
5He said at least four teams of firefighters were struggling to control the fire.
6Louise Donovan, a spokeswoman for the United Nations refugee agency, said in an email that fire services, rescue and emergency workers and volunteers deployed to help.
7"So far the fire has affected shelters, health centers, distribution points and other facilities. Volunteers are supporting those affected," she said.
8Rohingya refugees in the camps said many homes were burned down and several people had died, but neither officials nor the UN could confirm the reports.
9The cause of the fire has not been established.
10Several videos posted on social media showed large clouds of smoke rising over the camp.
11Zaifur Hussein is a 50-year-old Rohingya refugee who escaped the fire but lost his home.
12He told the Reuters news agency, "When we were in Myanmar we faced lots of problems... they destroyed everything... Now it has happened again."
13Bangladesh shelters more than one million Rohingyas.
14Most fled Myanmar in August 2017 when its military began to attack the minority Muslim population, killing and raping many people and burning whole villages.
15The U.N. has described the country's action as genocidal.
16Myanmar denies the accusation.
17Bangladesh wants to begin sending the refugees back to Buddhist-majority Myanmar.
18Several attempts to do so under a joint agreement failed because the Rohingya refused to go.
19They fear they will face more violence in Myanmar.
20The country denies them basic rights including citizenship.
21In January, a fire also destroyed hundreds of poor, temporary homes in the camp, leaving thousands without shelter.
22I'm Caty Weaver.
1A fire in Bangladesh Monday destroyed hundreds of shelters at the Rohingya refugee camp near Cox's Bazar. Thousands of people are now without homes, officials and witnesses said. 2Mohammad Shamsud Douza is a top official with the government's Refugee, Relief and Repatriation Commission. He said the fire at Balukhali camp broke out late in the day and spread quickly through at least four blocks. He said at least four teams of firefighters were struggling to control the fire. 3Louise Donovan, a spokeswoman for the United Nations refugee agency, said in an email that fire services, rescue and emergency workers and volunteers deployed to help. 4"So far the fire has affected shelters, health centers, distribution points and other facilities. Volunteers are supporting those affected," she said. 5Rohingya refugees in the camps said many homes were burned down and several people had died, but neither officials nor the UN could confirm the reports. The cause of the fire has not been established. 6Several videos posted on social media showed large clouds of smoke rising over the camp. 7Zaifur Hussein is a 50-year-old Rohingya refugee who escaped the fire but lost his home. He told the Reuters news agency, "When we were in Myanmar we faced lots of problems... they destroyed everything... Now it has happened again." 8Bangladesh shelters more than one million Rohingyas. Most fled Myanmar in August 2017 when its military began to attack the minority Muslim population, killing and raping many people and burning whole villages. The U.N. has described the country's action as genocidal. Myanmar denies the accusation. 9Bangladesh wants to begin sending the refugees back to Buddhist-majority Myanmar. Several attempts to do so under a joint agreement failed because the Rohingya refused to go. They fear they will face more violence in Myanmar. The country denies them basic rights including citizenship. 10In January, a fire also destroyed hundreds of poor, temporary homes in the camp, leaving thousands without shelter. 11I'm Caty Weaver. 12The Associated Press reported this story. Caty Weaver adapted it for VOA Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 13______________________________________________________________ 14Words in This Story 15distribution -n. the act of giving or delivering something to people 16facility -n. something (such as a building or large piece of equipment) that is built for a specific purpose 17We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.