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BEFORE
AFTER
When
the floods came
The executive director of the Prague Zoo recounts three harrowing days
when the Vltava rampaged through one of Europe’s finest zoological
gardens.
By Petr
Fejk
Director, Zoo Prague
A similar flood took place in Prague 160 years ago. Zoo Prague is divided
into two sections: one half of the zoo is protected by high rock, the
other half is situated along the river bank. We have here a special barrier
against flood up to the level of a 25-year flood. We also have a special
evacuation flood plain, up to the level of a 100-year flood. In August
we faced a something much higher and higher. In some places of the garden,
the water level was 12 meters (39 feet).
One half of my zoo was destroyed. The 1-year-old gorilla pavilion, the
pavilion of big cats, the pavilion of giant and galapagos tortoise, the
pavilion of seals and penguins, the pavilion of elephants, hippos and
rhinos, the terrarium, the bird pavilion and bird wintering ground, a
lot of aviaries, the quarantine, the children’s zoo and playground,
technical facilities, the education building, the restaurant, staff apartments
and enclosures for lemurs, makaks, pelicans, flamingos and mountain goats
all were destroyed.
The damage is about 5 million Euro (US$5.2 million).
During the floods, we evacuated more than 1,000 animals, nearly 800 birds,
150 reptiles and 100 mammals. Unfortunately, we were not able to save
nine mammals and 80 birds during the floods. Five more mammals and 50
birds died after the flood, mostly because of stress. It was probably
the largest and fastest evacuation of animals in the history of zoological
gardens.
BEFORE
AFTER
The
timeline
On Monday, August 12, a 20-year flood was announced. We evacuated 300
animals in four hours, including a giant tortoise, an orangutan, animals
from the children zoo and birds. Several staff members stayed overnight
in the zoo and waited in the state of emergency.
But in the morning, everything was different. The prognosis completely
changed.
That morning, we started by evacuating birds from several areas and clearing
the pavilion of big cats. Approximately 120 people were in the zoo at
this time. The animals were moved to other locations and into the quarantine
facility in the upper part of the zoo. Often they remained in their transport
boxes. This intervention took about four hours. Out of 15 animals from
the pavilion of big cats we were not able to save a lion and a bear. They
had to be put down.
After that, we had to deal with animals from the pavilion of gorillas
and the pavilion of elephants, hippos and rhinos. The pavilion of gorillas
was constructed with a special anti-flood tower, higher than the 100-year
flood level. We trained the animals to stay there, and on Monday before
the flood they even spent a training night there. A gorilla keeper and
I went by boat to the pavilion and entered the tower via the roof. We
found out that the youngest gorilla, a 6-year old Pong, did not manage
to escape into the tower. The male and three female gorillas in the tower
were in very deep stress. I ordered their transfer to safety. The staff
and the vet used two rafts to get into the tower. During tranquilizing
the stressed-out gorillas attacked us, and in a desperate moment they
jumped back and into the water of the inundated pavilion. I have never
seen anything like this extreme and tense situation.
The tranquilizing took about 45 minutes. Than we moved the gorillas manually
from the emergency exit into the boat and carried them loose 200 meters
(656 feet) on the river, which took about 45 minutes. One of the gorillas
woke up several times in the boat and we had to inject the animal directly
in the boat. Five minutes after finishing of the transportation, the gorillas
woke up.
In the meantime, other colleagues evacuated two rhinos from the pavilion
of rhinos, elephants and hippos. This transport took about three hours.
We thought hippos and elephants would be safe because their enclosures
are higher than the 100-year flood level. Unfortunately not. We had one
Asia elephant male, Kadira, two Asian females, Gulab and Shanti, and an
African female Sabi. Kadira was an extremely aggressive bull, unable to
be manipulated. We would have needed at least three days to prepare for
his transport. Gulab and Shanti were comfortable with contact and used
to walks around the zoo. Sabi was never out of her enclosure and her rescue
was highly risky.
By the afternoon the elephants were standing in the water. At that moment,
the female hippo female—we don’t know how—got out of her
enclosure and reached the same enclosure as the female elephants. I drove
all people away from area, allowing only elephant keepers and a couple
of strong men to remain there. We opened the enclosure gate and took the
frightened female elephants outside. One of them got out of the keepers'
control and ran away for 100 meters (328 feet) into the zoo. It took us
two hours to tie the elephants to the trees and calm them down.
BEFORE
AFTER
All this time, the bird evacuation still continued—twice. We had to move the already-evacuated birds once again. The next morning, Wednesday, we were in shock. We found part of the evacuated birds under the water. We had to evacuate them for a third time.
At the same time on Wednesday, the flood level was higher than the level of the barriers of the seal pavilion, so the seals had swam away. For two days we pursued the animals on the river. We saved both females in the highly dramatic situations—one for example in the last moment under a destroyed bridge. Our boat followed the male, Gaston, down the river to Germany. He swam more than 300 kilometers (186 miles). We were assisted by our colleagues from the Ústínad Labem ZOO, by firefighters and soldiers in Germany, even by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic. Unfortunately, Gaston died on the way back home because of his exhausted state, stress and infection.
The flood culminated on Wednesday afternoon. When I boated around the garden at that time, orientation was impossible. The only thing you could make out were treetops, several roofs and objects from other parts of Prague. Nobody could have expected or imagined such flooding.
BEFORE
AFTER
Thanks
Now, we are partially re-opened, thanks to my staff working very hard.
By my estimation, we need four years and 6 million Euro (US$6.3 million)
for the new zoo. We have to change a lot of our old projects, too. I hope
that 30 to 40 percent of money for this plan we will get from the insurance
company.
Immediately after the flood, a lot of people wanted to help us. During
one month we received 300,000 Euro (US$315,000) from companies, schools,
families and institutions. Artists organized benefit concerts and exhibits.
Radios, markets and institutions established fund-raising campaigns. I
have never experienced such solidarity as we do in this time.
But we also had to fight for this support through many critical voices
against the zoo. Some media attacked us for putting the animals down.
Some people didn’t find the sense of breeding exotic animals in the
center of Europe. It was a very, very exacting time.
Despite of all negatives that the flood brought to me personally, I am
very proud of being in the position of Zoo Director during the floods.
I experienced an incredible, heroic evacuation performance of my staff.
People did not think of themselves, they saved animals, often endangering
their own lives. I am proud of them.
I would like other Czech zoos for their solidarity and quick help. About
400 evacuated animals were placed into Czech zoological gardens. The Czech
zoos also arranged fund-raising to help our staff without flats.
I would like also to say thank you for the big support we received from
a lot of European and other zoos around the world. I got a lot of letters
and calls, as well as many offers of help. I also want to say thank you
for the released money given and raised by the World Association of Zoos
and Aquariums and the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
I also appreciate the offers we received to complete our breeding groups
of animals affected by the flood. I think we will have to use this offer
to create a new group of gorillas. Our gorilla male, Pong, has died now.
The other four gorillas will probably not go back to their pavilion in
Prague, but their behavior has completely changed. They are afraid of
the ground, especially during the night. I am going to ask EAZA and WAZA
institutions for cooperation in obtaining a new breeding group of gorillas
for our pavilion after reconstruction.
I hope, the great development of Prague Zoo in the last five years will
not stop. I believe that by having such strong support from the public
and colleagues from other zoos, we will be able to return our Garden back
to the top Europen level.
PhDr.Petr Fejk, Prague Zoo Director, 22.9.2002