Fire Sweeps Through Seven Syrian Refugee Tents in Tyre
A fire swept through seven tents in a Syrian refugee camp in the southern city of Tyre, causing only material damage, the state-run National News Agency reported on Sunday.
According to the news agency, Civil Defense teams controlled the blaze and prevented it from reaching other tents.
Several people suffered from respiratory distress, however no injuries were reported as the refugees were able to escape the tents.
The NNA said that the fire was caused by a heater in one of the tents.
Lebanon is also struggling under the weight of nearly one million Syrian refugees, who are testing its already limited resources.
Lebanese authorities have refused to set up official camps for refugees from Syria. Many live in hundreds of unofficial tent settlements across the country, mainly on Lebanon's northern and eastern peripheries.
Better-off refugees rent apartments in towns and cities, but face exorbitant rents.
Lebanon is hosting the highest number of refugees from Syria, while more than a million others have fled to Jordan and Turkey.
The refugee crisis has brought serious economic and political challenges to Lebanon, where there are regular clashes linked to the war in Syria.
Source: Agence France Presse, Naharnet
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