Major fire broke out at a refugee camp in Pauk Taw township of Arakan on December 12 afternoon destroying at least 34 makeshift buildings (similar to barracks), which were constructed by the authority for the Muslim inmates at Nget Chaung, said an inmate and eyewitness from the camp.
The Nget Chaung Muslim refugee camp with 1300 inmates is located in an island of Pauk Taw township, which is 30 miles east of Sittwe, the capital city of Arakan State in western Burma.
The Thursday fire erupted at 2.10 pm and immediately gutted 34 barracks, consisting of 8 rooms each, before it was neutralized at around 3 pm, informed the eyewitness U Adukorim. He also added that the fire might have originated from a kitchen in the barracks.
“We have lost every thing in the fire. All essential properties like clothes, cooking pots, stored foods etc were destroyed by the fire. We are now living under the sky,” claimed U Adukorim.
The duty police officer from Pauk Taw police station has confirmed the incident of fire but denied any details about it.
“A police team has already left for Nget Chaung refugee camp for inspection. As we are presently investigating the incident, we can not tell you more at this moment,” the police officer added.
