Motorists save koala stranded on busy road
A PAIR of motorists have come to the rescue of a terrified koala stranded in the middle of a busy road near Picton.
Macarthur
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A PAIR of motorists have come to the rescue of a terrified koala stranded in the middle of a busy road near Picton.
The footage was captured by Vanja Henderson, who along with another motorist, Carlton Elias, pulled over after seeing the distressed koala frozen in the middle of fast-moving traffic on Picton Rd.
Mrs Henderson noticed the koala as she was driving and pulled over further up the road to try to rescue it.
Mr Elias also pulled over a short while after and the pair waited for a break in traffic before running on to the road and grabbing the iconic Australian marsupial.
“He was just frozen in the middle of the road, I think he’s tried to get across but then couldn’t get over the barrier on the other side and with all the cars coming either way he was petrified,” Mrs Henderson said.
“If we hadn’t stopped he would have been killed. I got out of the car and was just screaming at the other guy to help me get the koala off the road.
“We waited until there was a break in traffic and grabbed him, he ran straight for the trees and hopefully that’s where he stays.”
Mrs Henderson said she’d heard about the large number of koalas being killed on roads in the Macarthur region and couldn’t simply drive past.
“A friend of mine works for WIRES and does a really inspiring job caring for injured wildlife,” she said.
“I’ve read a few stories about the number of koalas being killed on roads in the area, so I knew we had to do something.
“The government really needs to start taking action because the roads are only getting busier.”
An agreement signed earlier this month between Wilton developer Walker Corporation and Wollondilly Council will see a range of koala protection measures put in place along Picton Rd, including installation of wildlife fences.
Despite their cuddly appearance, wildlife experts don’t recommend picking up a wild koala as they may become aggressive.
“I’ve rescued a koala on Appin Rd (near Campbelltown) before and he was a really big boy and there was no way we could pick him up,” Mrs Henderson said.
“We had to pick this little guy up, there was no way he would’ve survived, while we were there we saw one car hit the brakes to try and avoid him.”