Young and old alike, they walk aimlessly across the ashen field, as if in search of something, yet nothing.

The shock is yet to wane: that picturesque view of a valley dotted with little brown huts and straw-woven granaries, buzzing with life… all that, now charred debris.

Time must have stopped for over 500 persons in Longaimuo village in Kassengor.

They are stuck in a nightmare.

Like a magic trick gone wrong, home has disappeared and has refused to show up again. Burnt bricks and ash now replace where welcoming huts once proudly stood.

The land is bare and only a few granaries remain. In absolute despair, only a few huts have been raised up again ….

Starting life afresh is too overwhelming to conceive!

“The village completely burnt to ashes. Not even a Tukul (traditional hut) was left standing,” Kapoeta governor, Louise Lobong Lojore emotionally recounts to members of a patrol by UNMISS, the United Nations Mission in South Sudan, on a mission to assess the situation in the area.

It is hard to believe that a cooking fire would turn into a wildfire and leave such devastation in its wake. After escaping with nothing but the clothes on their backs, survivors now camp in the open and under trees, exposed to the vagaries of the weather and dangerous animals lurking in the dark and surrounding thickets.

“One of the old women was attacked and dragged into the nearby bush by a hyena. We have still not found her body,” informed Capt. Benjamin Kum Makuei, a military officer at the military base in Kassengor.

They huddle together at night for warmth, security and sanity… then wander in the open field during the day. It is also difficult to find food and water. 

The Organization for Peace, Relief and Development, with support from the United Nations World Food Programme, has distributed 900 bags of sorghum, 90 bags of salt and 150 cartons of cooking oil to support the families’ nutritional needs for the next one month.

“I am thankful that we now have food and water because we were really suffering. However, we also need medication, farm implements, and construction materials to rebuild our homes and lives,” said Ngare Loliha, a mother who lost all her property in the fire outbreak.