A fire has consumed over 100 acres in Menengai Forest, Nakuru county.
The fire which started on Wednesday evening was put out shortly but started again early Thursday morning.
Menengai Forest station manager Mugo Gakono confirmed that over 100 acres were destroyed in the inferno.
"We learnt of the fire and notified the county firefighters before we rushed to the scene," the forester said.
Residents of Milimani estate which is close to the forest
tried to put out of the fire with twigs but were overwhelmed by the blaze forcing most of them to go back home.
"We saw the billows of smoke. It started at about 3 pm on Wednesday. It lasted about two hours before it started again on Thursday morning," Peter Kariuki, a resident said.
The residents said that it was difficult to stop the flames because of the dry weather and uneven terrain in the forest which slowed down their movements.
"We were afraid as the fire was spreading quickly and could have reached our homes," Mary Ngetich, another resident said.
They accused the county of failing to respond on time, saying they arrived three hours after the fire started.
“The forest burns every year whenever we have a drought but this time around, it is worse and we fear it might destroy our property," Mercy Muthoni said.
The cause of the fire is yet to be established.
"It could have been started by people who were burning charcoal or a cigarette that could have been dropped in the area," Gakono said.
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