Hundreds of koalas feared dead in Australian wildfire

Some 2,000 hectares of bush which sheltered hundreds of koalas in New South Wales, around 250 miles north of Sydney have been carbonised in a wildfire.

Wildlife rescuers are concerned about hundreds of native species living in the fire zone.

“Because it was of such high intensity, I think that the amount of deaths will be very high, unfortunately,” deplored a Koala rescuer, Cheyne Flanagan.

She said rescuers feared “carnage”, and had not been able to look for survivors because the fire was still burning.

She explained that rescuers were unable to look for survivors due to the ongoing out of control bushfire.

Koala population has suffered from a significant decline in recent years with less than 45,000 left in the wild. The native species listed as “vulnerable” by Environment Ministry of Australia are common victims of bushfires.

Loss of habitat, disease, dog attacks, and climate change also contributed to the drastic decrease of the mammalian species.

Sue Ashton of the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital told news agency AFP that, “If the fire goes through quickly and just singes their fur, they are fine and the fur will grow back”.

But if the fire continues to burn up the tree “they’ll perish”, she said.

“It’s a national tragedy because this koala population is so unique”.

As a reminder, New South Wales, Australia, has experienced hundreds of fires in the past months.