British army forces are being mobilized to battle the fire, which is raging on dry Loldaiga reserve, Laikipia. Recent military drills have been halted as an emergency effort to extinguish the massive fire begins.
The British army has a headquarters in Laikipia and trains Kenyan soldiers there in the northern rangelands.
About 1,000 British soldiers are reportedly participating in military drills in Kenya.
The fire started by British soldiers based in Kenya has claimed the lives of five elephants including a calf.
These troops seem to be plagued with bad luck. When they first arrived in the country last month, they sparked a massive covid 19 outbreak.
Soldiers sleeping with prostitutes living near the army base had previously infected the camp with HIV-AIDS in large numbers.
According to official defense reports, the fire spread rapidly but no British soldiers were wounded.
Over 4000 acres of wildlife habitat have been destroyed.
About 400 bird species, as well as endangered Grevy’s Zebras, leopards, and wild dogs, can be found in the Loldaiga Reserve.
Growing Concerns
Some soldiers have taken to social media to share their displeasure with the situation.
As a result, there are several unofficial reports of the fire’s origin.
One soldier shared a Snapchat message (right) that is thought to refer to the deadly inferno.
‘Two months in Kenya later, and we’ve just got eight days left,’ one soldier wrote in a Snapchat post.
‘I’ve been fine, started a fire, killed an elephant, and felt bad about it, but hey, while in Rome.’
In this case, Royal Military Police officers allegedly set off a flare in an attempt to disperse an elephant herd.
However, the flare is said to have illuminated a bush, catching a calf.
Another version is that the cause of the fire, allegedly began on Wednesday when troops cooking a meal on a camping stove mistakenly set fire to dry grass.
British Military Drills Stopped
This has prompted the British Army to begin an inquiry into the matter.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s red list of endangered animals recently declared all African elephant populations extinct for the first time.
The exercise has been paused while conditions on the ground can be fully assessed.
We can confirm that there has been a fire during a UK led exercise in Kenya and that investigations are ongoing. All personnel have been accounted for, and our priority now is to urgently assist the local community if they have been impacted.
a spokesman for the British army
The 2nd Battalion, Mercian Regiment, is responsible for the majority of British troops on exercise in Kenya.
British army leaders revealed last week that it would be phased out as part of the government’s Integrated Review of Defense and Stability.
230 military personnel are stationed in Kenya on a permanent basis to train visiting British troops and Kenyan forces.
The majority of them are members of the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK).
As Things Stand
The Kenya Wildlife Service has already joined the initiative to put out the flames.
British and Kenyan army helicopters dropped hundreds of tons of water on the raging inferno.
Military trucks from the United Kingdom were on standby to rescue those living nearby.
We can confirm there has been a fire during a UK-led exercise in Kenya and that investigations are ongoing.
The Ministry of Defence
The British army in Kenya is putting all their resources into containing the fire,
They are also working closely with the Kenyan authorities to manage the situation.
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