DAR ES SALAAM, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- An aerial survey carried out on Friday morning showed that the wildfire that broke out Sunday on Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest peak, has been under control, an official said.
Pascal Shelutete, the communications officer for the Tanzania National Parks Authority (TANAPA), said in a statement over 500 firefighters managed to control the fire that has destroyed 95.5 square kilometers of vegetation.
Mount Kilimanjaro, one of Tanzania's leading tourist destinations, is about 5,895 meters above sea level. Roughly 50,000 trekkers from across the world attempt to reach the summit of the mountain annually.
The statement said despite the putting out of the fire, firefighters have been deployed in most parts of the mountain to monitor if there were fresh fire outbreaks, adding that tourist activities were not affected.
Apart from the damage done on the vegetation and ecology of the mountain, the fire has also destroyed 12 huts, two toilets and solar equipment used by tourists climbing the mountain, TANAPA said on its official Twitter account earlier. Enditem
