#etosha-national-park

#etosha-national-park

Wildfires that have raged through one of Africa's largest national parks were under control, Namibia's government has said, amid criticisms from citizen firefighters over the lack of a national disaster response mechanism and limited resources. Fire broke out in Etosha national park, in the arid desert nation's north, on 22 September. The government said it suspected charcoal production next to the park, which is home to 114 mammal species including the critically endangered black rhino, was to blame.

Namibia has deployed more than 500 soldiers to help fight a fire that has burned through a third of the vast Etosha National Park, one of Africa's largest wildlife reserves, Prime Minister Tjitunga Ngurare Manongo said in a social media post. Manongo said, starting Sunday, the troops would help firefighters, police, and volunteers who are already fighting the raging fire.