A fire swept through a coastal water village in Sandakan district, in the northeast of Malaysia’s Sabah state, early on Sunday and left an estimated 1,000 homes in ruins. Authorities said thousands of people lost their homes.
Sandakan police chief George Abd Rakman, quoted by the local English-language daily The Star, called it a “very large-scale and heartbreaking incident.” By his count, 9,007 residents were affected.
The village sits among the poorest communities in Malaysia. Its wooden houses stand on stilts, many of them over the water and crowded close together. Indigenous and stateless families live there.
The Sabah fire and rescue department logged the first call at about 1.30am, which was 5.30pm GMT on Saturday. It sent 37 personnel from two stations.
They had a hard time of it. The lanes between the houses were too narrow for fire engines to get through. The tide was low, so crews could not easily reach open water to pump from. A strong wind kept feeding the flames.
The department’s statement put the damage at “an estimated 1,000 temporary floating homes with a total area of 10 acres and 100% burnt.” It reported no injuries and no deaths, and said “there is no more danger.”
Government response
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the federal government was working with Sabah authorities to get help and temporary accommodation to those affected as quickly as possible.
“The priority now is the safety of victims and immediate assistance on the ground,” Anwar wrote in a Facebook post.
