Sad memory - FLOODS in ZOO Prague + Videos!

Hello, everybody!

I just updated my last journal, becuase I found two lovely videos! And if you want to (just let me know, please), I can bring this time once more in future, because I will visit ZOO Prague soon. They have some info panel about floods and there are many photos. I would like to take shot of them and then post those shots of destryed pavilions with current state, it means 6 years after flood...)

Videos!

At first: --- cz.youtube.com/watch?v=cCgiBZy… this is a TV spot which announced that people should help ZOO Prague to overcome the flood. ZOO Prague has PERFECT public relation, so it is funny and cute many people gave money for ZOO


At second (click at the first ,,link", please): --- blog.cz/insert?from=tn.cz&cont… maybe you remember Gaston, sea lion who swam 400 kilometres in river from Prague to Germany, where he died due to exhaustion and stress you can see him in this video. It was taken when statue of this amazing animal was instaled in ZOO - it can still be seen in a small pond the man who is speaking in the video is Petr Fejk, the director

Please, do not forget BIG CATS FEATURE (woxys.deviantart.com/journal/2…), we are curious about your shots!

I want to speak about one event, which is six years old, but I still find it interesting. In Summer 2002, floods hit almost all Europe, causing very serious damages. Floods also hit Capital of the Czech republic, Prague. And its very famous ZOO...

Pictures used in this journals are NOT mine! They mostly belong to Czech press.

As I have already said, ZOO Prague can be divided into part which covers the hill and the large area which is close to Vltava river. When the river level started to rise in 2002, ZOO was concerned of course. So ZOO  was in concact with the city Prague and also with those, who were ,,water/river/floods  specialist“.
ZOO was told to prepare for ,,20-years floods“. It meant that level of danger was not so hight. Despite of those messages, ZOO decided to prepare for ,,50-years floods“ for sure and they started with moving some animals from their  exhibits.
But situation changed dramatically.
Until now, nobody knows why it was not predicted.
But ,,cent-year's flood“ finally hit the ZOO!

ZOO keepers had less and less time, when they were saving animals. In very short time, they managed to moved 1300 animals to safety! This number includes not only birds or so, but also very dangerous animals!

In extremelly bad conditions, during only 3 hours (!!!) ZOO managed to move and save 16 tigres, jaguars and leopards! Keepers also saved lowlands gorillas, when they moved four ONLY SLEEPING primates on the raft over very strong stream. They also saved rhinos!

You can see sleeping gorillas here and that there are no bars between keepers and dangerous gorillas. ZOO keepers were risking their lives when saving animals...




Althought the ZOO did their best and its keepers really showed their human qualities, they also had to put some animals down. For example they managed to save all female elephants, but finally they were forced to put down male elephant, who was simply too dangerous. This shot of suffering elephant named Kadir became one of the ,,2002 floods“ symbols...  This photo also won ,,Czech press photo“.




Finally, ZOO had to put down four big mammals: elephant Kadir, hippo, lion and a bear. You can see, all of these are simply dangerous animals and it would be impossible to let them leave the ZOO with the floods, because they would threaten people. That’s why it was necessity to kill them
Unfortunately, some ,,animal activists“ immediately started with quotes like ,,execution in ZOO Prague“ and so on. Fools!

I hate those people who were sitting on their butts and only critized, while ZOO workers were doing their best, risking their lives to save the animals. Many of them had their own flats in ZOO, but they did not care, just trying to help their animals...

Finally 14 mammals died. This number includes those, who were put down. Also 120 birds lost their lives   I think it is pretty good result if you look at the pictures, which describes the situation better than my words...





For more photos look here:
www.zoopraha.cz/cs/o-zoo/povod…


Kadir was not the only sad animal hero. Milions of people in the Czech republic and also abroad were wainting for every new about sea lion called Gaston. Sea lions were swimming in Vltava river and keepers were trying to catch them. They managed to save females. But male Gaston was swimming away. Many people (yeeeeees, animal-rights activists) were saying that he wanted freedom and that he was trying to reach the sea!
But in fact, Gaston was stressed, swimming in dirty water, followed by his ZOO keepers who were with him, sailing a boat and trying to feed poor Gaston.
They managed to catch him in Germany!
It means he swam 400 km!
Everybody was happy, because it seemed like great happy end...
But Gaston died only few hour after capture due to exhausting  and stress it was terrible depresion
The only good new is, that Gaston’s baby was born soon. Her name is Abeba.  Now Gaston has his own statue in the ZOO...




For many people, including me, ZOO keepers and ZOO director became real heroes who risked their lives in dangerous condition to save animals. Now ZOO director Petr Fejk is real VIP, almost everybody in the Czech republic knows him and he is mostly beloved person.




And ZOO Prague? Only 6 years after terrible flood, which almost copletely destroyed low part of its area, ZOO Prague was pronounced to be the World’s 7th best ZOO! I think they really deserve it, because ZOO took its chance and built great modern and huge exhibits insted of those damaged.

I can not wait to visit ZOO Prague again!