Shawdesh Desk:

At least nine Rohingyas and a Bangladeshi were killed in landslides as rain wreaked havoc in Rohingya camp and surrounding areas in Cox’s Bazar’s Ukhia upazila in the early hours of Wednesday.

The incident happened in Camps no. 8, 9, 10 and 14 of the upazila, said refugee relief and repatriation commissioner Mizanur Rahman.

The deceased are Hossain Ali, 50, Anwara Begum, 40, of Block-I/4 of Camp-9, Abdul Kalam, 47, of Camp-10, Selima Khatun, 42, Abu Meher, 19, Zainab Bibi, 20, Md Hares, 2, son of Anwar of Camp-8 East, Block B-42, Putoni, 34, daughter of Sultan Ahmed of Camp-1 West, Block F/5, Mohammad Salman, 3, son of Mohammad Jamal of Block I/9 of Camp 9.

Besides, Abdul Karim, 12, the son of Shah Alam, a Bangladeshi who lived near Thaingkhali camp number 14, was also killed in the camp.

RRRC Mizanur Rahman said that on Tuesday midnight, a landslide occurred at Camp 9 in Ukhia, leaving two Rohingyas dead. Seven other people were killed in camps numbers 8, 10, and 14 due to landslides.

Two fire service units recovered their bodies.

Authorities later confirmed the death of another Rohingya in Camp 9.

Though landslides are common in Rohingya, a large number of casualties are rare.

The last landslide in the Rohingya camp occurred on July 15, 2023, when a one-year-old baby named Ruma, daughter of Omar Faruq of Block B/26 of Camp No 8 of Ukhia upazila was killed.

Six Rohingyas were killed in the last major incident when three days of heavy monsoon rain and strong winds pelted massive refugee sites in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar in July 2021, causing flash floods and landslides.

Additional refugee relief and repatriation commissioner Md Shamsud Douza told New Age that they had forewarned Rohingyas living on hill slopes ahead of the monsoon, but many of them did not pay any attention.

‘We have continued our work to relocate Rohingyas from vulnerable areas,’ he said.

UNHCR, humanitarian, and government partners are on the ground supporting refugees and responding to the destruction and looming danger as more rain continues to fall, said UN refugee agency UNHCR Bangladesh in a message posted on social media platform X.

United News of Bangladesh reported that around 50,000 people have been stranded in Teknaf upazila of Cox’s Bazar as a flash flood triggered by heavy downpours inundated low-lying areas of four unions of the upazila.

The rain submerged Kanjor Para, Ulubunia, Unchiprang, Sat Gharia Para, Harangkhali of Whykong union, Syed Nur Para, Sulish Para, East Sikdar Para, Moulvibazar, Webrang, Chowdhury Para, Rangikhali  Lamar Para, Baharchhara of Hnila union, Uttar Shilkhali, Natun Bazar, Paschimpara of Shamlapur union and Teknaf municipality area, causing immense suffering to the residents.

Nur Muhammad Anwari, chairman of Whaikong union, said that many houses were damaged by the overnight rains that lashed the upazila from Tuesday night till 1:00pm on Wednesday.

Adnan Chowdhuyr, Teknaf upazila nirbahi officer, said that the residents of the upazila had been asked to shift to a safer place through loudspeakers.

The Bangladesh Meteorological Department reported 44mm of rain in Cox’s Bazar in 24 hours, ending at 6:00am on Wednesday.