Fires that have ravaged 10 per cent of Mount Kenya's forests, which serve as a water catchment for much of the country, have been extinguished after nine days, dpa quoted the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) as saying Friday. The forests of Mount Kenya, a UNESCO world heritage site and the second-highest peak in Africa, store water in the rainy season and release it during dry spells, providing a crucial water supply in a country prone to cyclical drought. The KWS said the fires had been started by "arsonists with ill intentions," a reference to wildlife poachers believed to have lit the blazes in order to cover up their illegal activities. "There are no more active burning fires in the mountain," KWS spokesman Paul Udoto said. "However, logs are still smouldering in isolated parts." The KWS, army, police and local communities fought to contain the spreading flames, cutting down trees to create a buttress and using helicopters to spray water on the fire. Udoto said that large animal species such as elephants, buffaloes and primates migrated from the fire, but an unknown number of reptiles and invertebrates perished in the flames. Poaching is a major problem in Kenya, where heavily armed criminal gangs seek ivory for a trade largely fueled by demand from the Far East. Two wardens and three poachers have been shot dead in gun battles this month alone. In Kenya, the illegal hunters generally target elephants and rhinos. A second fire in the Aberdare ranges has also been brought under control, Udoto said.
