COX’S BAZAR, Bangladesh (AFP) — Four UNICEF schools for Rohingya children in refugee camps in Bangladesh have been destroyed in a fire, officials said Tuesday, with the UN children’s agency calling it arson. It was unclear who might attack the schools, which were empty at the time, but the security situation in the camps housing around a million people has worsened in recent months. Last week a blaze thought to have been started by a […]
Tag: fire
Giant blaze leaves thousands homeless in Bangladesh Rohingya camp
COX’S BAZAR, Bangladesh (AFP) — A huge fire tore through a Rohingya refugee camp on Thursday destroying more than 550 shanty homes, but while 3,500 people were left homeless no serious casualties were reported, aid agencies said. The blaze started when most people in the sprawling Nayapara camp were asleep. Tens of thousands of members of the Muslim minority who fled a military crackdown in neighboring Myanmar in 2017 live in the overcrowded camp. International […]
One dead, 18 hurt in blaze at old people’s home in Spain
MADRID, Spain (AFP) — An 89-year-old woman died and another 18 pensioners were hospitalized, some with severe burns, after a fire ripped through an elderly care residence in Spain, rescuers said Wednesday. The blaze began late on Tuesday at the care home in the southern city of Seville, with some 170 police, medics and rescuers involved in the operation in which another 78 residents had to be rehoused, the emergency services said in a statement. […]
Australian ‘lives and homes’ at risk as fire nears Perth
PERTH, Australia (AFP) — An out-of-control bushfire threatened lives and homes in Australia’s west coast city of Perth Monday, with locals told to shelter in place from toxic fumes. Residents in several suburbs south of Perth have been warned to be on watch as around 150 firefighters battled a blaze which has razed more than 230 hectares since Saturday. The local emergency department downgraded the fire from earlier “emergency” level, but warned there was still […]
11 elderly dead in Russian nursing home fire: investigators
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Fire erupted in a retirement home in central Russia overnight, killing 11 people who were trapped as the blaze swept through the small wooden building, investigators said Tuesday. Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said it had opened a criminal investigation into possible negligence over the blaze at the home in the Bashkortostan region. “At the time the fire started, there were 15 people in the room, four of whom […]
Storms help Australia contain UNESCO heritage island fire
BRISBANE, Australia (AFP) — Australian firefighters have managed to control a bushfire that burned more than half of the UNESCO world heritage-listed Fraser Island, around two months after a suspected illegal campfire sparked the blaze. The fire on the world’s largest sand island, off Australia’s east coast, destroyed large swathes of the isle’s forests before heavy downpours arrived over the weekend. “With the help of welcome rainfall and a massive response from crews, the fire […]
Thousands flee homes near LA as wildfire rages
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Some 60,000 people fled their homes near Los Angeles on Monday as a wildfire raged across more than 2,000 acres (800 hectares) with high winds grounding firefighting aircraft. The so-called Silverado Fire erupted early in the morning in the foothills of Irvine, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) southeast of Los Angeles, and quickly spread, fueled by dry windy conditions. “It’s nuts — even inside the car, my eyes, my […]
Churches burnt as thousands mark Chile protest movement anniversary
SANTIAGO, Chile (AFP) — Two churches were torched as tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered Sunday in a central Santiago square to mark the anniversary of a protest movement that broke out last year demanding greater equality in Chile. The demonstration comes just a week before Chileans vote in a referendum on whether to replace the dictatorship-era constitution — one of the key demands when the protest movement began on October 18, 2019. While […]
Fires brought under control in Syria, Lebanon
DAMASCUS, Syria (AFP) — Dozens of fires that ravaged parts of Syria and Lebanon in recent days were brought under control on Sunday, authorities in the two countries said. In Syria, blazes fuelled by high temperatures broke out Friday in the provinces of Homs, Tartus and Latakia, where at least three people died, according to the health ministry. Several families had to flee residential areas near the fires, according to media reports. Syrian Agriculture Minister […]
New Zealand firefighters beating forest blaze
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — Firefighters in New Zealand battling a blaze that razed much of a small alpine village said they were making “good progress” Wednesday as high winds finally eased. The wildfire erupted in a mountain forest on the South Island in the early hours of Sunday morning and swept through the popular tourist spot of Lake Ohau, forcing residents to flee for their lives. Officials said it was miraculous no one was […]
Wildfires raze dozens of homes in New Zealand
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — Wildfires have destroyed up to 50 homes in New Zealand, authorities announced Monday, saying it was a miracle no one was hurt as “a wall of orange” razed most of a remote South Island village. The blaze began in a mountain forest early Sunday morning and, fanned by strong winds, swept through the village of Lake Ohau, forcing residents to flee for their lives. Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) […]
Wildfires raze dozens of homes in New Zealand
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — Wildfires have destroyed dozens of homes in New Zealand, authorities announced Monday, saying it was a miracle no one was hurt when “a wall of orange” descended on a remote South Island village. The blaze began in a mountain forest early Sunday morning and, fanned by strong winds, swept through the village of Lake Ohau, forcing residents to flee for their lives. “The high winds meant the fire could not […]
