Mt. Meru fires point to deliberate arson

MAJOR FOREST FIRE ENGULFS ARUSHA’S MT. MERU

(Posted 22nd September 2015)

Arson is suspected in one of the worst forest fires in recent times, now engulfing sections of Mt. Meru near the city of Arusha. While hundreds of fire fighters, army personnel and volunteers are now battling the blaze, which is fueled by strong winds and the dry conditions of the undergrowth, are wildlife fleeing the forest in droves. Forest elephant, forest antilopes, mammals of all sorts, among them giraffe, buffalo, zebra, warthog, the black-and-white colobus monkey and the blue monkey but in particular birds are presently robbed of their habitat after members of a local community allegedly set fire over a dispute with the forest department.

Mt. Meru, or sections of it, are part of the Arusha National Park and have in the past provided opportunities for extended hikes up the mountain to the crater rim which provides spectacular sights, often in fact used to prepare for the more challenging Kilimanjaro climbs.

Mt. Meru is also a crucial water tower for Arusha and the neighbouring areas where small and larger scale farms depend on streams and small rivers from the mountain to irrigate their crops.

At 4.562 metres elevation is Mt. Meru Tanzania’s second highest mountain, less than 50 miles from Mt. Kilimanjaro and the fifth highest peak in Africa.