A fire at the Cheetah Conservation Fund’s world-renowned cheetah conservation center in Namibia burned down buildings and injured an intern.
The blaze started on Wednesday after lighting hit the visitors center, which burned to the ground.
Workers from the fund were continuing to battle the fire to try to prevent any further spread, the fund said in a statement.
Dr. Laurie Marker, founder and executive director, said that it is “a stunning loss.”
“We are all just reeling from the shock,” she said. The center housed the center’s gift shop, as well as classrooms, a kitchen, and a staff apartment.
Amid a severe drought, the fire burned until midnight, assistant director Patricia Tricorache told AFP.
The news agency said that the worst drought in decades is happening right now in the southern African country.
The fund works on the conservation of cheetahs and their ecosystems, which includes education and research.
Around 3,000 cheetahs remain in the wild in Namibia, the largest in the world.
The fund re-opened on Oct. 17, and said its work will continue despite the “significant setback.”
