13 patas monkeys die in blaze at UK animal enclosure
Thirteen monkeys died in a fire that engulfed their enclosure Tuesday morning.
According to a park spokesman, a fire broke out in a patas monkeys house at the Woburn Safari Park in England in the early hours of Tuesday, with the enclosure being "well alight" by the time firefighters arrived.
The monkeys died after being trapped underneath the roof of the outbuilding, which reportedly collapsed during the fire. The fire took two hours to contain, ABC News reported.
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The park said in a statement: "Staff and fire crews attended the scene, however, devastatingly for everyone at the park, none of the 13 animals could be saved."
"All other animals within the jungle drive-through enclosure are being monitored, but early signs suggest that they have not been affected."
Paul Goddard, the local fire station commander, said it's likely the monkeys died before firefighters arrived.
"Our first instinct would be to rescue the animals if we could, but to do that we need to get the fire under control," Goddard said.
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An initial investigation by the fire service found that the blaze was caused by a generator fault.
The fire also follows another in England that occurred on Dec. 23 at the London Zoo, which resulted in the deaths of four meerkats and one aardvark. However, the cause of that fire remains unclear.
