Ecologists fear that almost half a billion animals died from devastating Australian wildfires. This number includes almost the one-third of koalas that live in New South Wales (NSW). This means 8,000 koalas experienced horrible death 240 miles north of Sydney, along the mid-north coast of the state.
According to the Sunday Times, ecologists from the University of Sydney estimate that about 480 million animals, including mammals, birds, and reptiles were killed either directly or indirectly by the frightening bushfires that have been blazing across Australia since September 2019.
According to Federal environment minister Sussan Ley, up to 30% of the koalas in the region were killed. This number is in fact equivalent to the amount of their habitat which had been consumed by the fires. So far, approximately 12.35 million acres (five million hectares) have been burned during this ongoing crisis. The official noted that she has been hard at work trying to establish corridors and plans to release hospitalized animals.
Over a hundred fires are currently raging across Australia, with volunteer firefighters joining efforts to minimize damage and doing what they can to rescue the beloved koalas. On December 19th 2019, two volunteer firefighters were killed as they battled the blazes in NSW. In total, nine people have died, one is missing, and 800 homes have been completely destroyed.
Regions greatly hit by the fires include the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area and portions of the Gondwana rainforests, the world's most extensive subtropical rainforest that has existed since the time of dinosaurs.
In the meantime, the dedicated staff at the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital spent Christmas Day tending 72 wounded and badly burnt koalas.
Since September 2019, a GoFundMe page for the hospital has received more than USD 1.4 million (AUD 2.175 million)—a record regarding funds raised for an Australian entity, according to Newshub.
The country's Prime Minister Scott Morrison was heavily criticized for taking his pre-Christmas vacation in Hawaii while his country was struggling with fires. This is how the hashtag #WhereTheBloodyHellAreYou emerged.
Australia is heavily reliant on coal power, and the government has been accused of avoiding taking action on climate change, obstructing global summits on climate change, and even skirting its obligations under the 2015 Paris accord.
Scomo hulas while Australia burns. My cartoon in the Fin @FinancialReview this morning. pic.twitter.com/rHXxF34c9r
— Peter Nicholson (@NiCartoons) December 17, 2019
Along with the wildfires, arid conditions due to a prolonged drought have also wrought heavy damage to the livelihoods of farmers and local economies.
The situation in Australia proves that we need to take action to save our planet.
In record heat Australia and South Australia, where temperature have risen to 40 degrees, koalas approached cyclists on the road to seek water. pic.twitter.com/DvW84gbaRq
— Akki (@akkitwts) December 28, 2019
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