Fires start again on Mt Kilimanjaro after govt said under control

Dar es Salaam/ Tanzania: In Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro, a wildfire, which the government thought was under control, reignited, officials, informed.

The peak, which is the highest in African continent and the fourth highest in the world, witnessed a fire blazing last Friday evening near the Karanga site, which is used by mountaineers to climb the peak, Agence France-Presse reported.

It is learnt that strong winds fanned the fire and a team of 400, including students and volunteers, worked to contain the blaze on Sunday. But later, it caught other areas.

A spokesperson for the Tanzanian natural resources and tourism ministry told reporters that fires started again in three places the previous night, where the same was under control.

The minister said that efforts are still going on to douse the flames, and one area has been brought under control so far. Gladly, no casualties or injuries have been reported so far.

The spokesperson added that the fire does not appear to threaten tourists visiting the mountain. There has been good progress reported from the firefighting front, and if the weather also stays in favour, the situation will be brought under control soon, he said.

"We see good progress in fighting the fires, and if the weather does not change, we will control the situation soon," AFP quoted him.

However, the government is yet to reveal the extent of the harm caused by the fires.

AFP reports that catastrophic fires are happening in various places around the globe due to climate change, which induces "tinder-dry" conditions. The human-induced climate change will trigger extreme weather conditions such as heat waves and droughts, stepping up their intensities too.