Heavy monsoon rains have caused severe structural damage to the Cox's Bazar Rohingya refugee camps where more than 31,000 Rohingyas are still living in areas considered to be at high risk of deadly flooding and landslides.Within 24 hours of the rains starting on Saturday, humanitarian agencies reported some 59 incidents, including landslides, water logging, extreme wind, and lightning strikes, the UN Migration Agency IOM said on Monday.
Over 9,000 people were affected, and this number is expected to increase as the rains continue.
The IOM said it is working with its partners to ensure that refugees continue to receive lifesaving assistance during the monsoon. They have already relocated thousands of vulnerable households to safer ground ahead of the rains.
Rohingya people are facing tremendous suffering during heavy rain in monsoon at Rohingya refugee camp IOM
"The situation in the camps is growing more desperate with every drop of rain that falls," Manuel Pereira, IOM's Emergency Coordinator in Cox's Bazar, said. "You have close to one million people living on hilly, muddy terrain with no trees or shrubs left to hold the ground in place. People and their makeshift shelters are being washed away in the rains.”
Pereira said they urgently needed more funding.
IOM, WFP and UNHCR have strategically positioned heavy machinery in key camp locations for disaster response operations. Teams are also working to increase available land for relocations. IOM has already prepared 186.8 acres of new land to relocate at least 7,000 people.
Existing refugee shelters have also been upgraded to better withstand heavy rain and high winds while refugees have been advised on measures to reduce their vulnerability to any upcoming disaster.
Key shelter and non-food items have been stockpiled. Mobile medical teams will also ensure that displaced and hard to reach populations have uninterrupted access to healthcare.
