The koala that was rescued by a grandmother without her shirt during the New South Wales bushfires has been, sadly, put to sleep because the injuries were “too serious to treat”.
Toni Doherty was the woman recorded running into the bushfire in Long Flat to save the injured animal named Ellenborough Lewis.
Even though Lewis was taken to the Koala Hospital in Port Macquarie and received treatment for severe burns to his feet, hands, arms, and the inside of his legs, the koala’s condition took a turn for the worse and the facility had to make the most difficult decision and put him to sleep on Tuesday.
The hospital wrote on Facebook that they made the decision to put Ellenborough Lewis to sleep. They placed him under general anesthesia to assess his burns injuries and change the bandages, but they explained that the burn injuries could only get worse, and not better. The burns got worse in Ellenborough Lewis’ case, so they had to make the tough decision.
Speaking to Channel Nine’s Today Show, Ms. Doherty said that she decided to go in the bushfire and save the marsupial because it was vulnerable, and all she could think to do was to try and rescue him.
She added that she could feel the heart radiating off Lewis as he was in pain, and she didn’t even know koalas could cry out.
Toni is a hero. She did all she could for that poor koala and I’m sure the koala hospital tried their best too.