Key facts
- At least eight Rohingya refugees, including five children, died in landslides in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.
- The landslides were triggered by heavy monsoon rains.
- Rescuers recovered eight bodies from the collapsed hills.
- Two children sustained injuries.
- Authorities are relocating refugees from vulnerable areas.
- Similar landslides have caused fatalities in the camps previously.
Heavy monsoon rains have triggered deadly landslides in southeastern Bangladesh, killing at least eight Rohingya refugees, including five children, officials reported. The incidents occurred in the Cox's Bazar district, where makeshift houses collapsed under mud and debris while residents slept.
Rescuers recovered eight bodies after several hills collapsed from late Sunday to Monday morning. Two children were found injured. Authorities stated that continuous rain and hillside torrents loosened soil, causing the collapses. The landslides affected at least four locations across the refugee camps.
Officials have been relocating refugees from at-risk hill areas, with approximately 1,000 people already moved to safer locations. The weather office in Dhaka forecasts more rain in the coming days. According to the UNHCR, similar landslides at the refugee camps between 2021 and 2026 resulted in 36 deaths and at least 86 injuries.
More than one million refugees who fled Myanmar reside in camps in Bangladesh. Renewed fighting in Myanmar's Rakhine state has raised concerns about a potential new influx of Rohingya refugees. In India, heavy monsoon rains have also caused flash floods and landslides in the northern Himalayan states and Maharashtra, leading to at least 13 deaths over the past few days.