The entrance to Wildhaven 7am on 8th Feb. 2009 taken from Fire Truck.
After Black Saturday
On Black Saturday our world changed forever. Wildhaven was totally destroyed - over 800 animals died at and around Wildhaven; all buildings were razed to the ground. Stella was on a fire truck putting out a fire at a neighbours home. Alan was at Wildhaven with the wildlife: animals were running from the fires and from the house as the smoke alarms screeched. As the buildings caught fire and the gas bottles vented, Alan threw open all the doors then followed the animals towards the forest. They were all running, but there was no where to go. Our world was on fire. It took us over a month to collect the bodies of our little ones from around the house, where our little friends had sheltered. There was so much death at Wildhaven our minds could not and never will comprehend that day. We lived in a fog for over a year and sometimes the fog comes back.
We moved into our new home on 1st October 2011. We have kept the temporary shed we lived in as it was. It is a reminder of the two and a half years it took us to rebuild Wildhaven. The new house is for the little ones in our care and two humans. The first aid room is finished, and our next project, the koala enclosure, was started on 18th Feb 2011. and Alan hopes to complete it soon. It is going to be a pleasure for us to share our new world with you, so you too may now watch our little ones grow and / or recover and be returned, whenever possible, from whence they came. Occasionally, the only safe option is to release them into the national park adjoining the property. Even so, with Black Saturday destroying the majority of wildlife between St Andrews and Kinglake, it will be many years before their numbers recover.
It is now December 2011 and the roof has been placed on the Koala enclosure.
We love these creatures deeply and trust you will too as you follow their journeys. Love from Stella, Alan and all at Wildhaven. .
