Britain has agreed to pay £2.9 million ($4 million) to residents living near Kenya’s Lolldaiga conservancy after a wildfire sparked by a 2021 British army exercise, the plaintiffs’ lawyer said on Friday.
“We arrived at a settlement and have dispatched payments,” lawyer Kelvin Kubai told Reuters, adding that compensation has gone to more than 7,000 residents for “smoke nuisance” caused by the blaze.
The British Army trains in Kenya’s Laikipia region from a base in Nanyuki. Residents accused a UK training unit of starting the March 2021 fire that damaged a nature reserve and left behind ordnance that later injured locals.
A British soldier appeared to claim responsibility in a social media post at the time, prompting the British High Commissioner to say she was “appalled” and to pledge a Royal Military Police investigation.
“The Lolldaiga fire was extremely regrettable, and the UK recognises the length of time it has taken to resolve this matter and the frustration that this has caused within the affected communities,” the British High Commission in Nairobi said on Friday.