Around 200 houses have been destroyed in a major fire at Kampung Bahagia, a water village in Sandakan, Malaysia.

Axar.az reports, citing Malaysian media, the Sabah Fire and Rescue Department stated that the fire broke out at about 1:32am on Sunday (April 19) and rapidly spread through densely packed wooden houses built on stilts.

The non-permanent structures, each about 300 square feet in size, were completely destroyed.

About 35 firefighters from Sandakan and Kinabatangan stations were deployed and arrived at the scene shortly after the fire started. However, narrow access routes prevented fire engines from reaching the site directly.

Firefighters faced additional challenges due to low tide, which limited access to water sources, and strong winds that helped the fire spread quickly through the settlement.

At the time of reporting, firefighting operations were still ongoing and the blaze had not yet been fully brought under control.

No casualties had been reported.