Sandakan firefighters' swift action saves 340 houses from being engulfed in flames

SANDAKAN: The swift action and efficiency of the Sandakan Fire and Rescue Station personnel managed to save 340 wooden houses in Kampung Cenderamata Limbungan, Jalan Batu Sapi, from being destroyed in a fire last night.

Station chief Severinus Sainkui said that the fire, however, destroyed 13 houses in the water village. No casualties were reported.

"A team was rushed to the scene of the incident about 13 kilometres from the station after receiving an emergency call at 6.05 pm. The head of operations reported that the fire involved an area of 0.4 hectares," he said in a statement here today.

According to him, the fire was successfully brought under control at 7.17 pm and the operation concluded at 11.17 pm.

He said the exact cause of the fire and the total loss involved are still under investigation.

Meanwhile, the Sabah State Disaster Management Committee Secretariat, in a separate statement, said 111 people from 20 families were evacuated as a result of the incident.

"A total of 60 adults and 51 children were evacuated to the temporary centre at the Batu Sapi People's Housing Project's hall which was opened at 8.30 last night," it said.

-- BERNAMA

Read the latest news here