East Darfur camp fire victims still living rough

Some 373 families of displaced people of camp El Neem in Ed Daein are still living in the open after the huge fire that broke out in the camp destroyed dozens of houses two weeks ago.

File photo

Some 373 families of displaced people of camp El Neem in Ed Daein are still living in the open after the huge fire that broke out in the camp destroyed dozens of houses two weeks ago.

One of the sheikhs of the camp told Radio Dabanga that these families are now in desperate need of food, tents, mattresses and water tins, this along with the lack of toilets.

The massive fire reportedly destroyed more than 1,000 homes in the displaced camps district of Ed Daein. No human casualties were reported, however the four camps of Dabanga, Areida, Garnaya, and Um Sauna suffered extensive damage.

The fire completely destroyed 15 shops and storage facilities at Dabanga Market. One of the camp sheikhs told Dabanga Radio that at least 1,000 families have been affected and that the preliminary inventory estimated the damage at about SDG 40 billion (*$2 million).

The Commissioner of Ed Daein, Ali El Tahir, said “the fire has been the largest of its kind in the recent period as it has destroyed the whole contents of about 1,000 houses.

* Based on the official US Dollar rate quoted by the Central Bank of Sudan (CBoS)