A team of Australian vets have skipped a bushfire evacuation to care for the local wildlife
A team of Australian vets have skipped a bushfire evacuation to care for the local wildlife
25 January 2016
published by http://www.thejournal.ie
Australia — A TEAM OF Australian vets have stayed behind following a bushfire evacuation of their town in order to care for the wildlife that has been badly burned in the fire.
The workers at the Waroona Veterinary Clinic in the western Australian town of Yarloop have made the decision to stay in defiance of the bushfire that has now raged for the best part of a month.
Source: Waroona Veterinary/Facebook
That selfless gesture has led to the clinic going viral and so many donations of goodwill that the practices Facebook page has had to ask those who would donate to stop.
A post on the clinics page earlier this month informed locals that staff would remain behind unless we absolutely must leave.
The same social media account has been providing the world with updates regarding the health and wellbeing of the local wildlife, together with heartbreaking pictures of the affected animals.
The workers at the clinic have declared themselves floored by the overwhelming generosity they have seen via online donations.
Source: Waroona Veterinary/Facebook
The bushfires seen in recent weeks has all but levelled the local community according to anABC Australia report.
The fire has been burning for the last 19 days. 181 properties have been destroyed, with the fires perimeter measuring over 392 kilometres at its peak.
As a blaze continues to burn out of control in northwest Tasmania, extending an emergency warning for residents, a senior firefighter says authorities face weeks more work.
The small shack community of Temma remained on high alert for a second day on Thursday with the Tasmania Fire Service warning of an ‘uncontrollable, unpredictable and fast-moving’ fire, which has already burned through almost 13,000 hectares.
While outhouses, fencing and verandas have been destroyed, there are no reports of dwelling damage, injury or loss of livestock.
Four people have been treated for smoke inhalation.
The areas of Nelson Bay and Arthur River remain on alert and the Nelson Bay Bridge has been destroyed.
Deputy chief Jeremy Smith says forecast rain over coming days will bring little, if any, relief.
‘We’re only anticipating potentially up to 20mm over the three or four days over the weekend so that is not enough rain to extinguish these fires,’ he told ABC Radio.
‘We’ve got many weeks of going through the fire lines and ensuring they’re completely out.’
The fire was one of more than 70 started across the state over a fortnight ago during a series of dry-lightning strikes.
Many of the blazes are burning in remote, difficult-to-access areas, including sections of protected old-growth forest.
Access to Cradle Mountain in the state’s central north has been closed, along with the popular Overland Track, from which trekkers were being air-winched to safety late on Wednesday.
On Thursday fire crews are due to start arriving from New Zealand to join local and interstate personnel.
‘The crews will have to go and do the hard slog and track every edge of those fires,’ Mr Smith said.
Forty helicopters, including some on loan from interstate, are being used to water bomb the fire in difficult-to-reach areas, while radar technology is proving helpful as smoke reduces visibility.
– See more at: http://www.skynews.com.au/news/top-stories/2016/01/28/bushfires-ravage-tasmania.html#sthash.xL1EW6NF.dpuf
