Myanmar refugee boys
walk at their destroyed camp at the Mae Surin camp in Mae Hong Son
province on March 24, 2013. Thai rescue workers picked through the ashes
of hundreds of shelters for Myanmar refugees, after a ferocious blaze
swept through a camp in northern Thailand killing 38 people. Around 100
people were injured. (Nicolas Asfouri/AFP/Getty Images)
Thai border forces are still investigating the cause of a March 22
fire that killed 38 people and displaced over 2,000 more in the Ban Mae
Surin refugee camp. According to local police under the authority of
Colonel Naruchit, 300 of 400 witnesses have been questioned since the
blaze.
Sally Thompson, Executive Director of The Border Consortium, which
works with refugees on the Thai-Burma border, said three theories
regarding the cause of the fire have emerged.
"One [story] is that it started accidentally through a spark from a
cooking pot in the camp," she said. “Another is that it was from a spark
from a forest fire in the surrounding area that has come into the camp.
And then more recently some people have also said that they had seen a
helicopter and a burning object coming from the sky."
The district police chief, Colonel Nitinart Wittayawuthikul, who was
in charge of the camp at the time of the incident, has been transferred
from his post for allegedly being negligent
in his response to the fire. Wittayawuthikul says he believes he was
transferred for refusing to declare the fire accidental after hearing
conflicting stories from witnesses.
The Ban Mae Surin camp is located in the Mae Hong Son province in the
Northwestern region of Thailand. It is home to some 3,500 ethnic Karen
refugees who have fled the decades-long conflict in neighboring Burma.
Border police had tightened security, stopping aid from entering the
camp, on Sunday following the inferno. People arriving at the camp to
deliver aid were told to drop off all deliveries at the Khun Yuam
district warehouse, as the only deliveries to the camp would be made by
local municipal and district offices, according to local police.
The Irrawaddy
reported Monday that security began stopping vehicles, including those
delivering aid to the devastated camp, and was only granting access to
Thai officials.
Aid deliveries have since resumed, and Burmese state authorities made
an unexpected gesture on Wednesday when they presented donations to the
camp to support ongoing relief efforts for the refugees. According to a
second report
published by The Irrawaddy on Thursday, authorities from the Karenni
National Progressive Party in the Karenni State, which sits not far from
the Thai-Burma border where Ban Mae Surin camp is located, donated 10
million kyat—$11,000— in cash, to refugees affected by the fire.
Individual donations of blankets, mosquito nets, clothes and rice
have been made by Karenni locals as well as the Nippon Foundation.
Shally Than, leader of the camp, confirmed the arrival of the donations.
Than has asked the international community for 13 million Thai baht —
$444,000 — in donations toward rebuilding efforts.
According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR), the blaze destroyed more than 400 homes, a school, clinic,
warehouse, community facilities, and government and aid offices. The International Rescue Committee,
which was among the first responders to the tragedy, has reported that
over 2,300 displaced refugees are now seeking shelter with relatives in
unaffected areas of the camp.
“We are deeply saddened by this tragic event and the IRC is doing
everything it can to provide swift aid and support to the survivors,”
said Christine Petrie, Director of International Rescue Committee
programs in Thailand. She said the Committee has already reestablished
running water, to aid in the prevention of disease.
“In record time, we have managed to replace damaged water pipes and
set up emergency taps where people can collect water. So many refugees
have helped us with the work, despite the loss and trauma they have
suffered.”
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