Malaysia Sandakan Fire: DREF Operation (MDRMY013)

Country: Malaysia Source: International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies Please refer to the attached file. Description of the Event Date of event 27-04-2026 What happened, where and when? On 19 April 2026, a major fire broke out in Kampung Bahagia, a densely populated water village settlement in Sandakan District, Sabah, Malaysia. The area is characterized by informal wooden stilt houses built in close proximity over water. The use of highly flammable materials and narrow spacing between structures enabled the fire to spread rapidly and hindered containment efforts, resulting in widespread destruction of homes, personal belongings, and critical documents. Initial information from Malaysian Red Crescent Society (MRCS) assessments and local response actors indicates that the incident severely affected the community, displacing large numbers of people. As of available situation reports, 1, 880 individuals from 380 families were recorded across eight temporary evacuation centres in Sandakan. Additional affected populations remained outside formal evacuation centres, either self-settled near the affected area or staying with host communities, with figures requiring further verification. Immediately following the incident, the MRCS Sabah Chapter deployed an initial response team on 20 April 2026 to support emergency relief and conduct a preliminary assessment. Given the scale and complexity of the disaster, as well as limited local capacity in Sandakan to manage a large-scale response of this nature, MRCS National Headquarters (NHQ) subsequently deployed an assessment team to support the MRC Sandakan Branch and MRC Sabah Chapter. Response efforts were further challenged by logistical constraints, including the geographical distance between Sandakan and Kota Kinabalu (approximately 330–380 km, requiring 6–7 hours by road), which affected the speed of reinforcement, coordination, and resource mobilization. Based on findings from the initial MRCS assessments conducted between 20–26 April 2026, and in light of evolving humanitarian needs across shelter, health, WASH, and protection sectors, a formal request for Disaster Response Emergency Fund (DREF) support was triggered and submitted on 27 April 2026, approximately 7 days after the incident. This timeframe reflects the need to consolidate assessment data and verify the scope of needs, which was constrained by challenges faced by MRCS and other responding agencies in obtaining reliable information, as local authorities were also overwhelmed by the scale and complexity of the situation.

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