Heartbreak at zoo as animals are killed in blaze
CHESTER Zoo has confirmed that several animals were killed in Saturday’s devastating fire.
Flames tore through the Monsoon Forest habitat on Saturday morning.
Emergency services declared the fire as a ‘major incident,’ immediately evacuating the zoo and working to move all animals nearby to safety.
All mammals, including critically endangered Sumatran orangutans, and rare silvery gibbons, were led to safety, but a number of insects, frogs, fish and birds died in the blaze.
Zoo boss Jamie Christon confirmed the ‘absolutely heartbreaking’ news in a post on Facebook yesterday.
He wrote said: “Yesterday was one of the toughest days in Chester Zoo’s long history. The remarkable efforts from the zoo team and the emergency services meant the fire was extinguished as quickly as possible.
“Visitors were evacuated immediately and we would like to thank them for their understanding and cooperation.
“Thankfully, no staff or public were harmed in the incident. Keepers were able to encourage all mammal species away from the fire and to safety – including the zoo’s group of critically endangered Sumatran orangutans, Sulawesi macaques, endangered silvery gibbons, and birds such as rhinoceros hornbills.
“We are, though, devastated to say that we were unable to save some of our insects, frogs, fish and small birds who were located near to the outbreak of the fire. It’s absolutely heart-breaking to lose any animal, especially when conservationists have worked so hard to breed these wonderful species.
“New homes have been found within the zoo for all of the animals that were led to safety and our teams are working around the clock to relocate them as soon as possible.
“The strength and support from the public has been incredibly overwhelming and the messages of goodwill have been of great comfort to our teams. We will support each other in rebuilding this part of the zoo and continue our mission of preventing extinction.
“The cause of the fire is currently unknown, but we will be helping the relevant authorities with the investigation that will take place over the coming days and weeks. We would again, like to thank the emergency services for their swift response.”
Mr Christon said many people had expressed a wish to visit the zoo to show support, so he confirmed that it would be open yesterday, and a lanterns event was due to go ahead last night as planned.
“Monsoon Forest and our Islands zone will remain closed as our conservationists and vets continue to provide expert care and attention to the species there,” he said.
“As a result of the overwhelming numbers of people asking how they can donate to support our work as a conservation charity in light of the fire, a JustGiving page has been set up.
“Thank you to everyone who has donated. Of course, we will be working with our insurers regarding the building damage but the generosity of our supporters will help us to recover our conservation efforts for threatened species as we fight against extinction.”
Investigations are ongoing to establish the cause of the fire, which broke out shortly after 11.30am.
The JustGiving page is at: www. justgiving.com/campaign/ monsoonforest