MIRI – More than 200 longhouse residents managed to flee unhurt in yet another major longhouse blaze in northern Sarawak.
The Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department said Rumah Selangat near Sg Segan in the Ulu Sebauh district went up in flames at about 9.30am today.
“At least 33 of 36 units in the longhouse were on fire. All of the longhouse’s residents managed to escape.
“The firefighting teams are trying to stop the fire from spreading,” Sarawak Bomba said in a press update.
No serious injuries have been reported.
The cause of this latest longhouse fire is still unclear.
This is the second major fire involving longhouses in Sarawak over the past two weeks.
On January 5, a fire swept through a longhouse in the Sg Asap resettlement scheme in Belaga district in central Sarawak.
The 2.30pm incident happened at Block F of the Uma Bakah longhouse in Sg Asap, located about 50km from the Bakun Dam.
The Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department said 15 houses built adjoining each other were burnt.
Fast action by volunteer firefighters managed to stop the fire from spreading to other longhouse blocks, where altogether, 319 families live. – The Vibes, January 14, 2023
