Refugee huts in flames
Hope amid charred remnants
By Beena Kharel

Goldhap Refugee Camp, Jhapa, 13 March 2008: Jhuma Dhakal, a 52-year-old Bhutanese refugee woman, is visibly distraught. She was squatting on the floor to eat her evening meal along with the family on that ill-fated first day of March. All she can remember is her neighbours shouting “Fire! Fire” on her doorstep. “I was shocked. I tried to pull myself up and get out of the hut. I fell down. I was numb for sometime. I didn’t even see fire, though it started from my house,” she says. When she regained her consciousness, she was away from her hut. A block of huts in Goldhap refugee camp was roaring with flames. She saw people rushing about to extinguish the fire.

Her humble belongings and little savings were charred. “More painful is the accusation from the refugee community. They call us criminals for setting fire to the camp on purpose. Yes, it broke out at our house. But I do not know how it happened,” she says crying.

Across from the shed in which 17 members of the Jhuma family is taking refuge, another group of refugees has gathered around to discuss the fire. Most have been victims. Some point accusing fingers at other refugees. Others recall how everyone helped douse the flames, and the material loss they incurred two weeks ago.

A devastating fire that swept through Goldhap Refugee Camp in Jhapa, a district in far-east Nepal, left thousands of refugees homeless. Out of 1,512 huts, 1,284 were burnt down completely so the refugees again found themselves homeless, and now live on the edge of the burnt-out camp in temporary shelters consisting of tarpaulin sheets.

Amazingly, no-one died in the blaze, and even the reported injuries to seven refugees, were remarkably light.

Lives saved!

“Luckily, all lives were saved. I am happy. Life comes first. We can acquire property only if we are alive,” observes Khadananada Dhakal, Jhuma’s next-door neighbour. His hut was reduced to ashes and his hand broken in a rescue operation. The fire incident occurred at around 6:00 pm on 1st March 2008. “If it had taken place later into the evening or at night, there would have been loss of lives, too,” says Bhabnath Poudel, who had previously received fire fighting training in the camp. “Greed takes lives!”

The majority of refugees responded sensibly to the fire. Most did not further endanger their lives by attempting to retrieve their possessions from their burning huts. This is one reason why nobody was killed and very few people were injured, according to Tularam Lamichhane, sector representative of Goldhap Refugee Camp.

Sabitra Subedi, the gender focal person of the camp, tells LWF Nepal staff how young refugees and police fought the fire bravely and readily came to rescue the fire victims. “Seeing their working style and co-ordination ability, one can say that the youth are aware of fire fighting techniques to some extent. The disaster was large-scale. But they demonstrated their strength and ability,” she says.

Fire survivors say they are lucky to have water reservoirs nearby. The trained ones rushed to fetch water; others used banana leaves to put out the fire. Those with no training tried to dismantle the blazing huts. Women and girls were seen scurrying with jerry cans of water. This is how the refugees recall the people’s efforts to tackle their own humanitarian crisis.

Pointing to the charred remnants of his hut, Yadav Dhakal, 27, son of Jhuma, says: “More fire fighting training and awareness programmes should be organised in the camps.”

LWF Nepal

As soon as the news of the fire reached LWF Nepal’s camp management, they dashed to the site and helped co-ordinate rescue operations. They were impressed by the support the refugees received from host communities while police support was remarkable and unprecedented.

“Earlier, the police offered little co-operation but they were very supportive this time around. Maybe because the election is approaching! Coincidentally, the home minister was also visiting the district,” says a local resident on condition of anonymity.

Whatever the reason, the refugees appreciated all the external assistance they received quickly.

With support from LWF Nepal, a 10-member fire committee of the refugees is in place in each of the seven refugee camps. The committees give orientation on fire-fighting techniques in the camps.

The refugee children forums also organised dramas entitled “Kharani” (Ashes) in 2007. A public service announcement regarding fire hazards is aired regularly from local Pathibhara and Kanchanjunga FM radio stations.

Indra Timilsina, a Bhutanese refugee who is involved in media mobilisation, thanks LWF Nepal for providing “timely assistance”.

Lessons learnt

Although all the lives were saved, some practical difficulties surfaced in the aftermath. An hour after placing a call, at least four fire brigades arrived on the site. But it took almost five hours to extinguish the fire which was leaping from the rooftops.

The fire brigades could not enter the settlement, says Lamichhane, sector representative of the camp.

It’s a small but a densely populated camp. The internal roads to the refugee huts have become narrower because the inhabitants have planted trees and shrubs on them. Some have built even platforms for washing dishes. Others have constructed small religious shrines.

Belatedly though, the refugees have realised that keeping the roads wide and open is crucial to rescue operations.

March is the beginning of the windy season that sparks off fire incidents. Fire is not a new hazard to Goldhap camp, which it had experienced many times. But the latest one was on a major scale not encountered before.

The refugees have requested donor and humanitarian agencies to seek to restore normality to their lives as soon as possible.

“I see hope. Huts can be rebuilt. I would like nothing better now than to leave the tarpaulin shelter and return to my own rebuilt hut soon,” says Durga Devi Khatiwada, 68. Her hand was wounded while carrying her physically-challenged daughter out of her burning hut.

She expresses the view common among many that the solar cookers and solar street lamps installed outside the huts had helped spread the fire. “I am not educated enough to comment on this. But I ask experts to review the effects that this equipment can trigger during such disasters. And then proper actions need to be taken,” Durga Devi adds.