IDP Camp Gutted By Fire As ISWAP Attacks Three Borno Communities
The Muna Garage camp for Internally Displaced People (IDP) in Maiduguri, Borno State capital, was gutted by fire on Saturday evening.
HumAngle gathered that about 200 makeshift homes were destroyed as a result and eyewitnesses have confirmed the death of at least one person.
Meanwhile, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) staged daring attacks on military positions in Dapchi, Gubio, and Konduga simultaneously during the period.
An official, who prefers not to be named, confirmed the attacks but said “it is too early to ascertain the number of casualties.”
According to a different source, officials of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) have visited the camp.
He added that the fire incident may have destroyed as many as 500 houses and left up to 1,600 IDPs homeless.
Bashir Abba, one of the residents at the IDP camp said he was just arriving from the market when he saw that the tents and the items inside had caught fire.
It happened around 4:40 pm, he added.
“We are not sure what caused the fire but it was not members of the Boko Haram group,” said Abba, who confirmed that SEMA officials had paid a visit.
“We don’t have where to sleep now. There are no materials we can manage. Nobody has come to give us relief materials or any form of support. We are relying on God,” Abba said.
Spokesperson for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Manzo Ekeziel, told HumAngle that he will find out about the government’s response to the incident and provide feedback.
It has been suggested that attacks of IDP camps are more dangerous during this period especially as the rainy season has just set in and the new coronavirus continues to spread.
The lack of adequate shelters and the overcrowding of the ones available have the potential to increase the spread of COVID-19, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has said.
“Camp decongestion has been a challenge, but it is now a priority,” @EdwardKallon, the Nigeria Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Edward Kallon, said in April.
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