Koala Joey Rescued After Being Found Next to Dead Mum in Fire-Ravaged Kangaroo Island

A young koala has been rescued after being found next to its dead mother in scorched bushland on the western end of Kangaroo Island on January 17.

Cinematographer Bill Blair was filming bushfire devastation on the island when he came across the koala “huddled next to his burnt mummy.”

“I picked it up and put it in the car with me and drove to the set up koala hospital on the island. Some 30 mins later and many lap sits in the car, we got there and they said he will [be] fine after treatment for burnt feet.

More than a billion animals were estimated to have died in the intense bushfire season that impacted Australia in late 2019, early 2020, according to a report from the University of Sydney. Credit: Bill Blair via Storyful