As we’re sure many will have seen, last Friday Storm Babet arrived in the UK and Mid Suffolk in particular was hit by torrential rain. We expected the day to be wet, but no-one was prepared for the conditions that led to us having to prioritise the safety of our birds, animals and staff!
Our main entrance pathway under a couple of inches of water!
After a night of heavy rain, our staff arrived on site to find our main entrance pathway flooded and water running down the inside wall of the shop. The decision was made to close for the day, as the rain were set to continue until late afternoon. While calls were made to the pre-booked school group to cancel their visit, the team quickly worked their way around the aviaries and enclosures to check on the birds and animals. Most were being very sensible and hiding in their safe, dry boxes, but a few decided that it was a good opportunity to wash away the summer dust!
Rocky enjoyed the shower
Unfortunately, most of the aviaries at SOS2 were already under a couple of inches of water. For our Snowy Owls, who spend most of their time on the ground, this meant that they were severely waterlogged and had to be rescued and rehoused in our dry off-show aviaries until the waters subsided.
Loki the Snowy “duck”
Our Raptor Hospital was also impacted by the flood, with the internal access pathway to the outdoor aviaries over boot height in places! Thankfully, most of our patients were nice and dry in their boxes, and only a couple needed to be brought indoors to dry off in the Intensive Care Ward.
When keeper Luke checked on the Meerkats in the morning, only 9 appeared from their heated Kastle! After a lot of searching, a rather soggy Meerkat appeared from the tunnels. The decision was made to give them access to the indoor encounter area and some heat lamps were installed to help them dry off and warm up.
Shut the door! Our Meerkats definitely didn’t approve of the weather!
With reports coming in that local roads were flooding, and not wanting to find themselves stranded, staff and volunteers prepared to give the birds a brunch feed round instead of the usual late afternoon feed. Everyone got home safe, but many had to take detours to avoid flooded roads.
Wellies required!
On Saturday, when the team arrived to find the main entrance pathway still underwater, and most of the other footpaths were unpassable without wellies, we opted to remain closed. There was debris to clear up and most of the aviaries were still underwater. The Flying Ground was also very waterlogged so we would have been unable to get birds out to fly.
We’re sure floating picnics could catch on!
Thankfully, the rain had stopped late on Friday, and Saturday was mostly dry, so we hoped that the waters would recede. Sunday dawned bright and sunny, and we decided to open. Our weekend volunteers did a sterling job of sweeping clear the pathways and putting out the Riddle Gravestones ready for the Halloween Trail for visitors to start. They then set to work digging extra drainage holes in and around some of the worse-affected aviaries.
With half term now upon us, the whole team will be working to ensure that visitors have an enjoyable visit, but some of our birds may not be on show this week while we monitor the conditions in their usual aviaries. We are very thankful that everyone is accounted for and safe.
Our thoughts are with everyone who has been impacted by the flooding locally and further afield, and we are very grateful for your support at this time.