Published 03:41 IST, November 16th 2019
After surviving bushfire, burnt koala gets its first sip of water
Injured koala, rescued after bushfires ravaged her habitat in Australia, is seen getting its first sip of water in a viral video.
The intense blazes of the bushfires on the eastern coast of Australia devastated the forest regions around New South Wales and Queensland. The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital which is responsible for taking care of the koalas declared it a national tragedy as many of them perished in fires. The photos and videos of the burned koalas are breaking hearts across the world. One such video of a burned koala taking his first sip of water after surviving the intense fire has gone viral on the internet.
The first sip of water
The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital recently shared a video of a burnt koala taking his first sip of water after surviving through the catastrophe on their Facebook page. A man named Darrel captured the koala using a blanket and brought it to the hospital where she is being treated for her burns. The post read, “Bellangry State Forest (SF) Kate on the day she was found in burnt-out country by Darrel. He may have got the sex wrong, but he did the right thing by gently capturing her using a big blanket and bringing her to us. Bellangry SF Kate has burns to hands. Kate has burns to hands, feet, face and full singeing of her body. She arrived very dehydrated and is now in the five-star service burns ward at the Koala Hospital (sic)”.
In the video, one can see the koala, exhausted and weak, drinking water from a bottle. Many koalas of the region, that are said to be genetically diverse, suffered the plight of forest fires.
Hundreds of koalas perish due to bushfires
A lightning strike on October 27 instigated a bushfire in an area that is critical to the unique Koala population, which is 400km north of Sydney. The fire destroyed over 2,000 hectares and continues to intensify. As per records, it is predicted that around 350 genetically diverse Koalas perished in the bushfire in the southern region of Port Macquarie. The local authorities have deployed fire services and rescue operations to safely rescue the Koalas, however, the blazing flames, continue to keep the area inaccessible. The staff of the Koala Hospital in Port Macquarie also reported that it is difficult to access and monitor the region due to intense flames, thereby isolating the area.
Updated 04:40 IST, November 16th 2019