Teknaf/Dhaka, 29 December (H.S.): A ferocious fire erupted late Sunday night in Rohingya refugee camps 24 and 25 in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar district, reducing over 100 highly flammable makeshift shelters to ashes before firefighters gained control, with preliminary reports attributing the inferno to a mobile phone charger explosion in one resident's hut.

The blaze, which ignited around 10:30 p.m. in the densely packed Leda and Alikhali areas of Hnila Union under Teknaf Upazila, spread with alarming speed through bamboo-and-tarpaulin structures, displacing hundreds in the overcrowded camps housing Myanmar's persecuted Rohingya minority.

No fatalities were reported, though residents and authorities mobilized frantically amid towering flames that defied initial containment efforts.

Eyewitnesses recounted how the conflagration originated in the shelter of a woman named Fatema Akhtar, where a mobile charger reportedly malfunctioned and burst into flames, igniting nearby dwellings packed tightly amid narrow pathways.

Mohammad Alam, Chairman of the Leda Development Management Committee, arrived at the scene approximately two hours later and confirmed the suspected cause, stating that camp volunteers and three fire service units had rushed to douse the blaze ravaging Blocks F and adjacent sections.

By the time professional responders deployed hoses and water tenders, 25 to over 100 homes—estimates varying by source—lay in charred ruins, with acrid smoke lingering into Monday morning.

Local resident Syed Alam described the chaos: sudden outbreaks in multiple huts forced camp dwellers to join firefighters in desperate bucket brigades, yet 25-30 structures succumbed before progress was made.Fellow inhabitant Nur Akam Mohammad Alam added that an initial fire in one shack escalated uncontrollably, leaving everyone helpless before the high flames until official aid arrived.

Fire service personnel, supported by the 16th Armed Police Battalion (APBn), contained the fire after prolonged efforts involving locals, camp management, and heavy equipment, preventing spread to adjacent camps.

Additional Deputy Inspector General Muhammad Kawsar Sikder, APBn Commander, noted the incident bridged Alikhali and Leda camps, with all affected parties collaborating; he cautioned that the precise cause awaited full investigation amid the tinderbox conditions of flammable materials and high winds.

The Dhaka Tribune and Somoy News corroborated the timeline and scale, highlighting recurring fire hazards in these sprawling settlements that shelter over a million Rohingya since their 2017 exodus from Myanmar.

Aid agencies have yet to announce relief distributions, though past incidents prompted swift provision of tarps, food, and cash. Authorities urged enhanced firebreaks and safer wiring to avert future tragedies in the vulnerable camps.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar