Emergency Repairs of the Chimpanzee Fence

The collapse of the High Security Enclosure Fence:

On 31st January 2026, at around 17:00 hours, Ngamba Island experienced a heavy storm with strong winds and high waves blowing from East to West. The storm broke several trees in the sanctuary camp area. Following this, staff inspected the fence lines and discovered that part of the High Security Enclosure had collapsed. Mawa and Asega, the resident chimpanzees inside the enclosure, were observed examining the damage. Staff acted quickly to remove them to prevent an inevitable escape.

The interventions done:

To prevent further damage, staff—guided by management—detached the fallen section, which was pulling down the rest of the fence and leaning heavily on the main forest fence line. The inclined section was cut and pulled using strainers by the staff and casual workers.

In February, reinforcement works on the High Security Enclosure began. The design at the reinforcement points was modified, and tools and materials were procured. Key measures included:

• Drums filled with concrete were placed in water, with galvanized poles fitted to support the main fence structure.
• Plastic-coated gabion boxes filled with stones, covered with concrete, and reinforced with inclined poles to withstand heavy winds.
• Supported poles added to stabilize the fence.
• The ends of the main forest and buffer fence lines had weakened due to rust and erosion from wave action. These points were reinforced with concrete in drums and galvanized poles. Plastic-coated gabion boxes were laid, filled with stones, and concreted to strengthen the structures.

All works commenced in early February and were completed on 28th February 2026. The chimpanzees were released back into the enclosure on 1st March 2026.

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