A 48-year-old silverback gorilla called Massa, inset, was among the animals killed in the inferno at Krefeld Zoo in Germany. Photos / AP, Krefeld Zoo
A 48-year-old silverback gorilla called Massa, inset, was among the animals killed in the inferno at Krefeld Zoo in Germany. Photos / AP, Krefeld Zoo
A fire raced through a zoo in western Germany in the first few minutes of the new year, killing more than 30 animals, including apes, monkeys, bats and birds, authorities said.
Police said paper sky lanterns launched nearby to celebrate the arrival of 2020 were probably to blame.
Several witnesses saw cylindrical paper lanterns with little fires inside flying in the night sky shortly after midnight Wednesday near the Krefeld Zoo, Gerd Hoppmann, the city's head of criminal police, told reporters.
The burnt down monkey house can be seen after the fire in the Krefeld Zoo on New Year's Eve. Photo / Getty Images
"People reported seeing those sky lanterns flying at low altitude near the zoo and then it started burning," Hoppmann said. He said investigators also found used lanterns on the ground that hadn't burned entirely.
They were 34cm long, made out of white paper with an opening at the bottom where a small fire would be suspended. The fire heats the air inside, making them fly and shine at night. Police and firefighters received the first emergency calls at 12.38am.
The zoo near the Dutch border said its entire ape house burned down and more than 30 animals — including five orangutans, two gorillas, a chimpanzee and several monkeys — were killed, as well as fruit bats and birds.
Only two chimpanzees were able to be rescued from the flames by firefighters. They suffered burns but are in stable condition, zoo director Wolfgang Dressen said.
"It's close to a miracle that Bally, a 40-year-old female chimpanzee, and Limbo, a younger male, survived this inferno," Dressen said, adding that many of the zoo's animal handlers were in shock at the devastation.
"We have to seriously work through the mourning process," Dressen said. "This is an unfathomable tragedy."
A 48-year-old silverback gorilla called Massa was among the animals killed in the inferno. Photo / Krefeld Zoo
Mother Miliki takes the new month-old gorilla baby Boboto for a walk at Krefeld Zoo in September this year. Photo / Getty Images
He said many of the dead animals were close to extinction in the wild.
The zoo said the Gorilla Garden, which is near its devastated Ape House, didn't go up in flames and that gorilla Kidogo and six other members of his family are alive.
Firefighters stand in front of a burnt out animal house at the Krefeld Zoo. Photo / AP
Fire kills all animals inside an ape house at a zoo in #Germany
More than 30 animals have been killed in a fire at the Krefeld Zoo. Local media blames fireworks for the tragedy. pic.twitter.com/iDS0IlyiuI
Germans usually welcome in the new year with fireworks at midnight and people are allowed to buy and launch fireworks. Sky lanterns, however, are both illegal and uncommon in Krefeld and most of Germany. The mini hot-air balloons made of paper have been used in Asia for centuries.
30 animals, including great apes, are killed in zoo fire in Krefeld, Germany. This zoo has a bad safety record. Here are an “elder” gorilla couple. pic.twitter.com/lwXbBwllyo
After requests by police for witnesses to come forward, Krefeld police said several people had come in and were being interrogated. Police said they would not release details on them.
Firefighters stand in front of the burning monkey house at Krefeld Zoo, in Krefeld, Germnay. Photo / AP
Candles, pictures of monkeys, stuffed animals and a sign with the inscription 'Why?' are in front of the main entrance of the Krefeld Zoo. Photo / Getty Images
Hoppmann said some of the partially burned lanterns had handwritten notes on them.
The Krefeld zoo, which opened in 1975, attracts 400,000 visitors each year. It closed after the fire and plans to remain closed Thursday.
