Sabah
\nHundreds of people have been displaced after a fire destroyed about 200 homes in a coastal village in Malaysia\u2019s Sabah state, the state news agency Bernama reported.
\nAuthorities were notified of the fire in Sandakan district at about 1.32am on Sunday (17:32 GMT, Saturday), the district\u2019s fire and rescue chief, Jimmy Lagung, was quoted as saying.
\n\u201cStrong winds and the close proximity \u200cof the houses caused the fire to spread rapidly, while low tide conditions also made it difficult to obtain an open water source,\u201d Bernama quoted Lagung as saying.
\nThe fire broke out in one of Sabah\u2019s water villages, which feature wooden houses built on stilts and are home to some of the country\u2019s poorest communities, including many stateless and indigenous groups.
\nAbout 445 people have been displaced so far, Bernama said, citing unofficial figures of people registered at a temporary relief centre in Sandakan.
\nDatuk Walter Kenson, head of the Sandakan District Disaster Management Committee, said examination of the village found the homes of the affected residents \u201care no longer safe to live in\u201d.
\nMalaysia\u2019s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the federal government was coordinating with Sabah authorities to provide basic assistance \u200cand temporary relocation for those affected.
\n\u201cThe priority now is the safety of the victims and \u200cimmediate assistance \u200con the ground,\u201d he said in a Facebook post.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sabah Hundreds of people have been displaced after a fire destroyed about 200 homes in a coastal village in Malaysia\u2019s Sabah state, the state news agency Bernama reported. Authorities were notified of the fire in Sandakan district at about 1.32am on Sunday (17:32 GMT, Saturday), the district\u2019s fire and rescue chief, Jimmy Lagung, was quoted […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":542803,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-542773","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n