Seven Rohingyas Killed in Ukhiya Camp Landslide

Rescue teams from the Fire Service and Civil Defense rushed to the spot and are actively conducting rescue operations alongside locals and Rohingyas.

At least seven Rohingya refugees were killed and several others are feared trapped after a rain-triggered landslide buried a madrasah being used as a temporary shelter at a refugee camp in Ukhiya, Cox's Bazar, on Tuesday afternoon.

The incident occurred around 2:30 pm at Rohingya Camp-5, according to Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Mohammed Mizanur Rahman.

He said torrential monsoon rain caused a nearby hillside to collapse suddenly onto the madrasah, where many refugees had taken shelter from the severe weather.

Rescue teams from the Fire Service and Civil Defence, police, the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society and Rohingya volunteers immediately launched rescue operations.

Authorities confirmed the recovery of five bodies and the rescue of two injured people. However, the exact number of people still trapped beneath the debris could not be confirmed immediately.

According to the Cox's Bazar weather office, 51 millimetres of rainfall was recorded in the six hours between 6:00 am and noon, triggering landslides and flooding in several areas.

The latest tragedy comes amid a series of rain-related disasters across Cox's Bazar. A landslide killed one person in Cox's Bazar town on Monday, while separate landslides earlier claimed the lives of eight Rohingya refugees in the camps and two other people in Cox's Bazar town and Pekua.

The ongoing heavy rains have also caused flooding in low-lying areas, where two children, including a Rohingya child, recently drowned in rising floodwaters.