Woman risks life to save scorched koala from bushfires
A woman has risked her life in the middle of a bushfire in NSW, to save a burnt koala.
In the video the koala emerges from the flames and walks across the road, making its way to the other side, which also appears to be alight.
The footage then shows a woman, only identified as Toni, seen running to save the koala, her shirt off and in her hand.
Toni uses her shirt to grab the koala, who climbed up a tree at this point, she pulls him off and runs with it.
She then gives the koala some water to drink before dousing it with water, making sure the koala was no longer smouldering, the koala begins the squeal when Toni pours water on him.
The koala was taken to the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, according to CNN, the koala is reportedly still being treated for his burns, and is in a “very serious condition”.
According to the Go Fund Me, set up by the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, once a koala is admitted into their care they are rehydrated, then examined for burns the next day, which are treated and bandaged, and changed every three days.
In the Port Macquarie region on the NSW coast, it is feared there may be upwards of 350 koalas that are dead, as a fire tore through the Lake Innes Nature Reserve earlier in November.
Between 50,000 and 100,000 koalas remain in the wild and Claire Smith, founder of Wildlife Rescue Sunshine Coast told Yahoo News Australia because the fires are tearing through the tree canopy, koalas don’t really have a chance of survival.
“The loss of that volume of animals is going to dramatically affect the genetic diversity of the species over the next 20 years,” Ms Smith said.
The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital has been trying to raise money to build a ‘koala ark’ to accommodate surviving koalas in a healthy habitat.
Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.
