Wildfires have been running rampant as of late.
Different areas around the world have spent the past few years fighting wildfires nonstop. It’s something that threatens every aspect of life because all forms of life suffer from its effects. Bluntly, nobody is safe when a wildfire rages on.
Something that has been receiving much-needed attention during the fires is wildlife. Their homes and food sources are destroyed, wiping them out in the process. Those who do survive are forever changed.
But there are people from around the world who care about the wellbeing of these animals.
Specifically in Australia, as wildfires raged in New South Wales and Queensland last month, a group of Dutch-knitting enthusiasts worked hard to provide knit gloves for koalas with burns to their paws.
The group, from a quilt shop called, the Quilt Shop 100 based in the Netherlands has knitted more than 400 pairs of mittens for a koala hospital in Australia.
In turn, the hospital, Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, is working to provide drinking water to the animals stuck in fire-laden areas. Thus far, they have raised almost $2 million through GoFundMe.
Their campaign states:
“Initially, the hospital’s aim was to raise money to purchase and distribute automatic drinking stations which will be installed in the burnt areas to help in koala and wildlife survival.”
Another group, The Animal Rescue Freecycle Craft Guild, has even begun publishing free sewing, crocheting, and knitting patterns on their Facebook page for those wanting to help.
The outpouring of support from both local and international areas have forced the guild to announce that they are no longer accepting any mittens at the moment.
They wrote:
“If you wanted to take a break from crafting for a week, now is the time. Send out what you have and give your hands a break for a week.”
“All 150 Wildlife groups, 1230 Rescuers and hundreds of vets have been contacted and large supply loads are with them now or on the way. The hubs are starting to fill so we are being mindful not to waste anything and to ensure resources are working on the best outcomes!”
Morning all! Just a note before the weekend to let you know that we have a lot of product now coming in (which is good)…
Posted by Derek Knox onTuesday, November 26, 2019
They did clarify though that they are still accepting other forms of donations such as emergency food, medicine, and supplies.
Meanwhile, the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital continues to raise money for their cause. Though they surpassed their goal of $25,000, they are putting the money to good use nonetheless.
They stated:
“The number of drinking stations being built has now been increased and they will be shared with other wildlife organizations in fire-affected regions across New South Wales. Two are being built for dispatch to the northern rivers fire area next week.”
In addition to building drinking stations, they will also be “purchasing a water-carrying vehicle with fire fighting capabilities to replenish the drinking stations with water as needed.”
There is still hope for the surviving koalas that were rescued (31 have been rescued as of October 31).
The hospital would like to launch a breeding facility in a healthy habitat area for the surviving koalas with the additional funds.
But there is still quite a ways to go.
“As many as 350 koalas have perished with approximately 75% of the fire ground footprint being prime koala habitat.”
Still, it seems that all of these groups have made great strides, thus far.
If you would like to donate to the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, you may do so here.
If you would like to donate items to The Animal Rescue Freecycle Craft Guild, you may do so here. They list their drop-off locations as well as where to send items via mail. Or you can make monetary donations here.
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