MIRI: More than 150 people were left homeless when two longhouses in Sri Aman division were razed to the ground in separate incidents.
A longhouse comprising eight units in Lubok Antu burned down in an early morning fire on Monday (Aug 20), leaving some 48 people homeless, the state Fire and Rescue Department said.
Another longhouse, Rumah Museh, was destroyed in a fire on Sunday (Aug 19) evening.
At least 100 people were left homeless when the 20-unit settlement was burned in the fire that started about 5pm.
Separately, the Roban rubbish disposal site, which is located in Sri Aman, also caught fire.
On Monday (Aug 20), firefighters were still trying to put out the fire at the landfill which is about the size of a football field.
Meanwhile, the Fire and Rescue Department Air Wing has managed to contain peat fires that have been raging since Friday (Aug 17).
Miri Fire Chief Law Poh Kiong said more than 140 rounds of aerial water-bombing succeeded in dousing most of the fires.
Firemen are still at the site of the peat fires to douse remaining flames.
Meanwhile, almost all meteorological stations in the country have recorded hazy conditions as at 4pm on Aug 20.
The Ministry of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change said there were 20 hotspots detected in Kalimantan and 12 in Sumatra, Indonesia.
In addition, one hotspot was detected in the peninsula along with another in Sabah, the ministry said in a statement.
Evening thunderstorms and rains in several states in the peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak are expected to reduce the effects of the haze.
“The spread of rainfall throughout the country is also expected to increase this week,” the statement said.
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