afrol News, 20 July - The Rwandan wildfires that gutted the Volcanoes National Park over the weekend have forced hundreds of animals including rare mountain gorillas to flee to Democratic Republic of Congo for safety, wildlife officials have said.

The fires started Sunday on the Rwandan side of the mountainous bamboo-forested enclave straddling the three states. The ecological zone is home to the world's 720 remaining mountain gorillas.

Reports have suggested arsonists, while other indications are pointing to natural causes as the region continues to experience an unusually dry season.

An estimated 100 hectares have so far been gutted on the foot hills of Muhabura Mountain on the Ugandan side, according to wildlife officials.

However, media reports from Uganda say officials there have been told that the fire was started deliberately by FDLR/Interahamwe rebels who had been seen in the mountains in recent months.

Local reports said efforts to control the fires during the current dry season affecting most parts of Africa were hampered by an acute shortage of water.

"We are working with the respective armies in Uganda and Rwanda and other stakeholders to manage the situation," said Moses Mapesa, operations director of the state-run Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA).

Despite the immediate damage, Mapesa was however quoted as saying that the fires in the long run help the system get rid of excessive biomass and dangerous species like some fungi, thus giving way for better and healthier species to emerge.

There are up to 261 gorillas that are taken care of by Rwanda wildlife authorities out of an estimated several hundreds living in the mountainous area referred to as the Virungas, which includes Mgahinga Gorilla National Park (Uganda), Volcanoes National Park (Rwanda) and Virunga National Park (Democratic Republic of Congo).

By staff writer

© afrol News

Tweet

Printable version

On the Afrol News front page now

UN will not monitor human rights in Western Sahara afrol News - The US has backed down on its demand that UN peacekeepers in Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara also shall monitor the human rights situation after Moroccan sources threatened to scale down relations with Washington. Read more

Central African Republic

Central African Republic falling apart afrol News - One month after the rebel movement Séléka took over power in the Central African Republic, unrest is spreading in the country. The new leader lacks control of his forces, which continue looting and abusing civilians. Read more

Kenya

Kenyatta secures tight victory in Kenya afrol News - The official election results in Kenya have finally been announced, and Uhuru Kenyatta managed to win the first poll round outright with a narrow 50.7 percent. But the main opponent, PM Raila Odinga, is filing a vote rigging complaint to the courts. Read more

Cape Verde Cape Verde to produce dragon fruit afrol News - Cape Verde authorities have invested large sums to diversify the arid country's agricultural sector. Now, the dragon fruit, originating in tropical America, is being introduced for the first commercial production in Africa. Read more

Egypt Even governors in Pharaonic Egypt died in their 20s afrol News - Researchers have analysed more than 200 mummies from ancient Egypt, finding that even high dignitaries were poorly nourished and had infectious diseases. The typical governor in Pharaonic Egypt died before he was 30 years old. Read more