SANDAKAN: Hundreds of villagers ran to safety as fire engulfed 18 houses at Kampung Sim Sim here this afternoon.
District fire and rescue chief Anddre Andrew said the department received a distress call at 12.28pm and despatched 22 firemen to the village.
“The fire razed homes in the water village. The team took about an hour to bring the fire under control.
“Firefighters have also assisted in evacuating villagers from the village,” he said.
Anddre said the affected villagers had been placed at the Sim Sim Mosque temporarily.
“We don’t have the actual figure of how many people are affected by the blaze but the team is still at the site to provide necessary assistance and to investigate cause of the fire,” he said.
It was learnt that the district welfare department was in the process of registering the fire victims.