At least eight people, including women and children, died in a series of landslides triggered by heavy rain in Rohingya camps in south-eastern Bangladesh, officials said on Monday. Three others were injured.

The landslides struck three separate blocks of the camps in Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar, between 1:10 am and 3:00 am local time. All victims were Rohingya refugees.

In the first incident, at around 1:10 am, a hillside collapsed onto the shelter of Mohammad Kamal Hossain, 44, in Block D/6 of Jamtoli Camp No. 15, in Palongkhali Union. Hossain, his wife Humaira Begum, 39, and their four-year-old son Mohammad Anas were killed at the scene, said Dollar Tripura, an official at Ukhiya fire service and civil defence station. Firefighters recovered the three bodies and rescued two injured people, he added.

About 35 minutes later, a seven-year-old boy, Ekram, died after being buried beneath earth that came down from a nearby hillside in Block D/7 of Kutupalong Camp No. 7, in Rajapalong Union. Local Rohingya volunteers pulled the boy’s body from the debris, said camp leader Enayet Ullah.

The deadliest of the three slides occurred around 3:00 am in Block C/11 of Balukhali Camp No. 11. Four people were killed and one person injured. The victims were identified as sisters Umme Habiba, 27, and Tanzina Akter, 13, daughters of Abdur Razzak, and two young brothers, Mohammad Rihan, 5, and Harunur Rashid, 3, sons of a man named Mohammad Rashid.

The Ukhiya sub-district administration has been using loudspeakers to urge families living on vulnerable slopes to move to safer ground. “There’s a risk of landslides due to heavy rain. The sub-district administration is regularly making announcements asking those living in risky areas to move to safe shelter,” said Panna Akter, the upazila nirbahi officer. “Everyone is urged to follow the administration's instructions.”

Cox’s Bazar recorded more than 100 millimetres of rain in the past 24 hours, according to the meteorological department. Assistant meteorologist Md Abdul Hannan said a well-marked low-pressure system over the Bay of Bengal and active monsoon winds were driving the downpour. He warned that heavy rain was likely to persist for at least two more days.