14 January 2017•Update: 15 January 2017
By Andrew Wasike
NAIROBI, Kenya
More than 200 firefighters have been deployed to Kenya’s Aberdare National Park to battle an inferno which has so far destroyed an estimated 6,000 hectares of vegetation, according to the Kenya Forest Service.
Forest service zonal manager Muchiri Mathinji told Anadolu Agency Saturday that the fire is being fanned by strong hot winds sweeping the Aberdare mountain range.
“The fire has destroyed a section of the Aberdare National Park but the damage cannot be estimated as of now. We have a team battling the fire right now so that it doesn’t reach the natural forested area,” Mathinji said.
He added that the firefighters have been drawn from the Kenya Police, Kenya Forest Service, and Kenya Wildlife Service.
The forest service said that it suspects the fire was caused by charcoal burners operating illegally in the area.
The Aberdare National Park, part of the 160-kilometer (99 miles) Aberdare range, is one of the largest water catchment areas in the country due to its high altitude.
According to the Kenya Wildlife Service, the park provides a habitat for over 250 bird species, elephants, black rhinos, leopards, spotted hyenas, olive baboons, black and white colobus monkeys, and buffalos, among others.
