Crews called to blaze at Hertfordshire play centre as entire exotic zoo collection killed

An entire collection of exotic animals has died in a huge fire at a children’s soft play centre, the fire service has confirmed.

Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service were called to The Jungle Box in Buntingford, Hertfordshire in the early hours of Wednesday (10 June) morning.

Footage shows thick black smoke billowing from the fire, which broke out in an industrial estate unit, as fire crews fought to get it under control.

“Sadly, we can confirm that a number of animals were inside the building at the time of the fire and did not survive,” said assistant chief fire officer Darren Cook.

The play centre had recently promoted a new collection of exotic animals, including meerkats, snakes, iguanas and tortoises, on social media, the BBC reports.

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