The fire destroyed 600 hectares of a national park, threatening protected elephants and endangered black rhinos.
CAPE TOWN, February 8 (ANA) – A fire which engulfed more than 600 hectares of land at the famous Aberdare National Park and forest in central Kenya has been contained, according to Kenyan authorities.
Government officials said the blaze broke out on Saturday, February 5, and dozens of forest rangers, firefighters and volunteers had struggled to prevent it from spreading. Suspicions of arson emerged, reported science, research and technology news website Phys.org.
While initial reports indicate arson, the government says it has launched an investigation into how the fire started, wrote BBC News Africa.
More than 600ha of forestland have been laid waste, threatening protected elephants and endangered black rhinos, said the report.
Rhino Ark, a conservation charity in Kenya, earlier said it had sent in helicopters to conduct aerial surveys of the area to estimate the extent of the damage to the forest cover, local media said.
Rhino Ark was established in 1988 in response to the crisis facing Kenya’s black rhino population in the Aberdare ecosystem.
According to Kenyan online news publication The Star, the trust’s executive director Christian Lambrechts said that on Monday morning 35 trained firefighters were airlifted to the scene and were deployed to the most threatening fire lines. They were from Rhino Ark, Mount Kenya Trust, Kenya Forest Service and Kenya Wildlife Service.
The fierce blaze comes as Kenya experiences dry spells in various regions due to a period of low rainfall.
Researchers have faulted climate change for the new unforgiving dry seasons in many parts of the country, reported African news network BNN Africa.
In 2020, fires engulfed Tsavo National Park in what authorities said was a result of negligence and drought.
– African News Agency (ANA); Editing by Yaron Blecher
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