RESIDENTS affected by the catastrophic blaze that swept through Kampung Bahagia in the early hours of Sunday have described a night of panic and irreversible loss, as entire homes and long-built livelihoods were consumed within hours.
Among those hardest hit is 61-year-old Lim Nawali, who lost both his residence and the bakso stall he had relied on for income for nearly a decade.
“I did not just lose my home; I lost my livelihood. The bakso stall I operated for eight years is also gone,” he told News Straits Times.
Lim, one of nearly 8,000 people impacted by the fire, said he was startled awake at around 1.30am by commotion from a neighbouring house, only to realise that a fire had already broken out and was rapidly spreading through the settlement.
“I saw flames spreading and immediately woke my children and grandchildren to flee,” he said.
Describing the chaos, he added: “We could not save anything. We only managed to escape with our lives. It was chaotic.
“My only priority was the safety of my young grandchildren. It is fate. Even my stall, which was located away from the house, caught fire.”
Another resident, Alpaida Bundun, 38, said she initially believed her home would remain untouched, given its distance from the point where the fire first started.
However, the densely packed layout of the water village allowed the flames to spread quickly, eventually engulfing her house and the small grocery shop she had operated for five years.
“I was about to sleep when I heard people shouting about a fire. When I checked, the flames were already intense. We grabbed only our important documents and ran. The first house to catch fire was far away, but before we knew it, the flames were upon us,” she said.
Her home was destroyed at about 3am, nearly two hours after the fire was first reported, illustrating how rapidly the situation escalated across the settlement.
The testimonies reflect the broader human toll of the disaster, which has displaced thousands and left many families not only without shelter but also without their primary means of income, as authorities continue relief and recovery efforts. - April 19, 2026
