Warning: This article may contain some materials that some can consider graphic.
Even though more than 480,000,000 animals are estimated to have been killed by the fires in Australia with even more victims expected, millions of people around the world want to help but aren’t sure what they can do.
We want to help as well, so let’s see how we can do it together.
What started as a particularly early fire season, being called by some experts and civilians alike as a “historic event,” during press conferences and discussions with reporters from publications such as The New York Times, many are still wondering why these fires began so early.
Most experts are pointing to climate change as a major contributor to the raging fires, including some meteorologists. Whatever the cause, it’s become a state of emergency, with the fires starting to flare up in September, and now sprawling into January.
The BBC says the prime minister has even decided to bring in 3,000 reserve troops in order to fight these raging fires across the bush and rainforests of the country.
To date, these fires have also destroyed more than 1,500 homes and killed over 23 people.
But we’re on the other side of the world, and we want to help, so here’s how you can do it.
The following are some of the places where you can make a donation:
- WIRES accepts donations via its emergency fund to help the NSW wildlife inhabitants.
- The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital is asking for donations to share funds with other wildlife organizations across the regions of NSW, as the company has already raised over $2 million to aid koalas in the local area.
- The Koalas in Care Facebook page is seeking donations to assist in its koala care.
- The Rescue Collective and Animal Rescue Freecycle and Support are taking donations here to help provide animals with medicine, water, and food to help keep animals in burned areas alive.
- Donate to fire services, as the firefighters are what Australia needs to extinguish the fires, thus aiding the animals, as well as the people affected. You can see a more extensive list here. Three places to donate are:
- The NSW Rural Fire Service, benefiting volunteer firefighters.
- The County Fire Authority’s Victorian Bushfire Relief Fund, which assists the area of Victoria in its pursuits to combat the fires.
- The County Fire Service in South Australia also assists volunteer firefighters with their funds.
Even by simply sharing the story you will be helping the cause reach more people. Neither you or I can make a difference on our own, but together, people on the Internet can make very real differences in the world.
Share the story, make people aware, help the people and animals in Australia!